Blossoms
by Princess-Tsunade
Summary: 3 years pass ... the blossoming of bonds, of friendships, of being Sweet Sixteen and beautiful. Through shadows in the borders, and evil under innocent surfaces, it is through the most terrible hardships that true strength and love can blossom ...
1. The Boys Are Back In Town!

DISCLAIMER: 'Naruto' is not mine, that happy honour belongs to Kishimoto Masashi! All I own are the new characters and my continuing plot and storyline.

My sequel to "Flower of Konoha" …

Now, having said that, I'm pretty positive you can still read this without having to read that one … I'm going to try as hard as possible, because "Flower" IS a long story. It'd be nice of course, if you would read it, but it's way too long :P

SPOILERS! Heck, I can't even give you a chapter reference … I think I'm literally going to be playing by ear for this story; so far, I can tell you the spoiler is up to the CURRENT chapter, which is 320-something, and may increase as the story goes on

Dedicated to: **_Alex, Cara and Laura, swedenfc19, sakurali19, Fiery Winter, Nightshroud _**

You guys (in no particular order) have been with me through much – we've either bullied each other with a bit of TLC or you've pulled me through emotional conflicts and supported me likewise, or we've been yakking like, forever … thank you so much

(man, now I feel bad, because I know there are so many others … )

Also: PG-13 rating for language. Yeah, it'll be a bit more reflective of those adolescent years from now. Darker themes …

**Chapter 1: The Boys Are Back In Town! **

**_Background Music: Jennifer Saunders - Holding Out For A Hero _**

* * *

It was only when it was really dark that one could see the stars.

Her eyes gazed upwards, past the thick canopy of leaves she couldn't see, past the overhanging branches, into the pitch-black inkiness beyond.

_Hmm …darkness and stars … a story only told for the dreamers … _

The wind was chill against her bare arms. A wearied hand rose to her shoulder, prematurely wrinkled fingers tugged listlessly, pulling the breastplate armour that didn't fit into place, adjusting the strap of her ANBU uniform.

She hurt. She really hurt all over. But she couldn't move. She wasn't allowed to shift from her post. Under no circumstances could she disobey orders. Especially not now, not right now when …

"Do you read me? North-sector … Do you read me, North-sector …?"

She hadn't even moved when her headset crackled into life, when the deep, baritone voice of her Captain crackled from somewhere that was surely the other end of the world. Somewhere far, far away from this deep, dark forest, a forest that at the moment seemed to be hiding something frightening, something terrible … the wind whistling through seemed to be telling secrets of something unspeakable that had taken place within its walls tonight …

There was silence and heavy breathing from the headset when she didn't respond. And when he spoke again, there was a quiet hardness to his voice, a fury that lurked right underneath.

"We have had communication from Eastern-sector Commander, his team is down, I repeat, his team is down …"

She didn't move. She didn't respond.

"Dispatch of emergency medical team to Eastern-sector was ordered, so command station here requests that you and your team keep to their posts."

Crouching on a tall tree branch, one knee drawn up, upon which her chin slightly rested. One arm lazily embraced her knee, the other lay limply by her side. Head tilted back, gazing upwards into the blindness, seeing nothing. What moron said you can see the stars when it's dark?

"Do you read me, North-sector? Maintain your positions, we will arrange backup to be sent to you immediately. Under no accounts draw attention to yourselves …"

She squinted and frowned. _Obviously they didn't take into account that there may be so many things blocking the sky … idiot … _

He took a deep, long breath.

He snapped.

"This is your last warning! Your behaviour in UNACCEPTABLE! I am SICK and TIRED of dealing with your CHILDISH and IRRESPONSIBLE –"

"Captain … Jakuchu-sensei …"

He stopped short, like a tap turned off. Her own eyes slid open slowly, refocusing. She allowed the soft words of the third voice to sink into her mind …

"Captain, please … we acknowledge your message. We will endeavour to maintain our positions until the back-up is sighted …"

It was a soft voice, a voice full of gentleness and beauty, a calm within a storm. She had come to love and cherish this voice … it was one of the voices that kept her heart beating. One of the few voices that forced her to remember that on the other side of the darkness there was the balancing light …

And it wasn't only her. When their Captain answered, it was his usual grave, deep voice, no sign whatsoever of the storm he had unleashed only minutes previously. "Thank you, my dear. Keep in touch. Out."

"Roger."

The silence that followed was thick, as thick as the blanket darkness around them. But perhaps she would have been able to see a little through that darkness if only … if only her eyes would settle down, if only they would stop watering and – there! Now the pools that had filled up had become streams, cheerfully racing streams down her cheek, beading at her chin, and small, soft, inaudible plops! landing somewhere on the fabric of her uniform. And as her eyes became blurred from the tears, the chill wind around and her height from the ground made it slightly more perilous.

The silence from her team was also something unpleasant, uncomfortable. She knew neither of them were enjoying it at all, and she knew very well how hard she was making it for them.

How hard it had been for them all, in fact. But especially …

"I'm … sorry."

The words had crept out of her before she was fully aware. Without her even knowing. Her own voice was, as it had been so often lately, foreign sounding to her ears – like something unpleasantly hoarse, grating; like something continually sticking in her mouth. And the sudden silence that immediately followed was thick, was electric. And that sweet, soft voice, that lovely gentle tone was joined by another, this one brighter, cheerful, exuberant just like her owner.

"It's all right, there's no need for you to –

BANG!!

When the first explosion shook the ground, all their minds just went into a blank haze.

Their first thoughts had been, 'Attack!' Somehow, despite their care, the enemy had sensed them. The hours they had been traveling after receiving the order for the medical team to evacuate NOW, racing through a thick, impenetratable forest, no lights in the sky to guide them … they had left the main platoon team long behind, hours behind, and who knew what fate they had encountered, since medical shinobi had been told to dispatch instantly.

She felt the sharp wind race against her skin as her body automatically propelled itself away from the branch. Vaguely, from the corner of her eye, she noticed the tall, dark tree in which she had been hiding had completely been obliterated – not even a bolt of lightning could have done to this tree what the explosion did to it.

Spinning, spiraling, somersaulting at top speed, a result of years and years of conditioning of her body for the fluid movements that signaled a shinobi, a proud member of Konoha's ANBU … but in her case, she had gone into automatic pilot …

A whirlwind of dust rose as her slender body made contact with the ground, the speed of her hurtling jump causing her to slide backwards, her sandals scraping the ground harshly. Again in automatic mode, she unthinkingly twisted her body swiftly to one side, avoiding the barrage of flying knives that embedded themselves forcefully into the ground.

When she heard an anguished gasp to her right, her eyes darted swiftly towards the tree there, registered a sudden scuffle, the inaudible rustle of clothes as the hidden figure suddenly collected herself and leapt away from the shadowy danger that had crept up.

Twisting her body sideways, she suddenly planted both sandaled feet on the ground firmly, and an elegant poise followed, a half-crouch and her right arm spread out, away to her side … sword … I need my sword …

And she waited. Her palm suddenly went cold with sweat.

She gritted her teeth. Damn. I don't have enough damn chakra –

"Hm. Looks like you're all used up, Princess."

Her head snapped up. Her eyes darkened.

The man is grinning. His uniform is black and grey, but the grey has dark black spots on it. Irregular spots. Blood. The blood of a Leaf, no doubt …

He wears a single eyepatch, the scars on his face stand out as vivid white criss-crossing lines, and his teeth are rotting. Nevertheless, he's grinning. There's a joke going on here that perhaps she doesn't know about.

She stared at him. She stared at the giant katana he was holding in enormous powerful hands, the tightness of his grip. She stared at his clothing, at his weapon holsters. Then she noticed something else … her eyes widened.

The man couldn't see her face. No one could ever see the face of ANBU. But he might have noticed the way her tense position eased, however slightly. He might have noticed the barely conspicuous way her posture shifted. Had he been able to see her eyes, he would have known that she had seen something, and that he was already a dead man.

But he couldn't see her eyes. And though he saw her slender figure shift, he blinked.

And she had vanished.

The man barely had time to curse loudly before –

"You won't be needing this one."

A deadly whisper right against his ear. Too late, he barely had time to hear the scraping of sword against scabbard as the twin blade at his waist was slid outwards, her slim fingers curled tightly around it. He had only just heard her voice behind him, had not even deciphered her meaning before his right arm exploded in a shower of red.

No one heard his scream of agony. That is, the others there were too busy – the forest and clearing around them was a flurry of activity, of moving shadows and other things that couldn't be seen. Neither knew what their comrades' situations were, but that didn't matter now. Because this wasn't a game either.

His giant katana dropped to the ground with a light thud, followed soon by his knees as he also dropped to the ground, head spinning, dizzy. The blood was spurting so freely from his right arm, a healthy red river rapidly racing cheerfully from between chilled, numbed fingers which tried to cover the vicious slit.

A slice across the arm normally wouldn't bring any shinobi down, except …

_Damned … she's a … damned medical ninja … she knew exactly where to cut me … _

She wasn't even breathing hard, not even her heart was thudding. It was exactly the same speed and force it had been mere seconds ago, just before the tree she had been in had exploded. Her eyes never left the hunched, writhing black-cloaked figure on the ground before her. Her eyes didn't miss a single motion, not even a single twitch. They hadn't missed the shape and formation of his weapon holsters, the way the leather straps had crossed at his waist, signaling that he carried twin blades. Even through his thick, bulky clothing, her ANBU trained eyes didn't miss the finer detail.

She didn't need the ANBU mask over her face – even behind it, her face was as expressionless as an empty sky. There was no emotion crossing her face as a single, dull thought made its way sluggishly through the emptiness … Telling us not to draw attention to ourselves … what an idiot …

Her hands tightened on the katana. Her heart hardened just a little more …

Theirs was the last medical team, the absolute last one reserved for the missions. The horror that had been Konoha's shadow the past few years had seen some of the best and top-rated medical shinobi come and go; the brilliant inspired idea a beautiful eighteen-year old Tsunade had had so long ago, to include a doctor as part of the standard four-man platoons had, backfired in one of the cruelest and tragic ways imaginable. Because medical shinobi had now become something of a necessity, a priceless keepsake – 'finders keepers' it was for whoever managed to capture one, whichever country they happened to be from. And Hidden Leaf had always had a knack for fostering the best and brightest of the medical jounins. Which was no surprise why they had gone missing at such a rapid pace lately …

Lightning doesn't usually come out of a clear sky. Perhaps that's why the first few painful drops of rain stirred her dulled senses into surprise. Her steel mind registered the thick, close weather, thoughtfully foresaw an impending storm, and her gaze slid just as emotionlessly back towards the man writhing and screaming in agony at her feet, his own bloodied katana gripped in between slender fingers.

The cloud descended before her eyes.

Memories, images of the rooms of the hospital, the wards, the children's area came flooding into her. The blood, the listlessness, the blank eyes. The forced smiles. The horror of the past couple of years …

Hew jaw set. Something hardened inside.

She viciously swung the katana.

The abruptness with which the man's screams stopped were lost in the sudden flurry of noise around her. Somehow, the hidden shadows had become shapes, shapes of more tall, terrifyingly, monstrous things.

And as her katana sliced easily, fluently through layers of black clothing and armour, sunk easily into flesh, the hardness around her heart intensified. It had stopped a long time ago – a long time ago, the way she had bled inside whenever she'd forced her katana into another human being, into another person whom Kami-sama had given breath and life to … the bleeding had long ago stopped, dried out, and ceased flowing.

No longer did she see a masked enemy and see beyond him as a man, as a husband, as a father. No longer did the pain settle behind her eyes as she saw in her mind's eyes an image of a young woman, holding her baby, her children, and waiting for this husband to return home. Once, those images would have made her hesitate, would have struck something raw and tender within her, and made her hold back. But not anymore.

Not when she had seen into the eyes of the patients in her own wards. Not when she had seen the brutality these very same men were capable of. The brutality with which they had risen one morning, put on their clothes, kissed their families goodbye and set out to do. Nothing else in their minds, in their goals, except to torture.

He rose up in front of her, white teeth almost luminous in the darkness, a sneering tilt to his mouth, his eyes covered by a visor. Faceless. To make their jobs easier, they decided to be faceless. The last thing that a girl, a boy, a mother, a father, a child would see before the end would be that sneer. As their bodies succumbed, defeated to the torture the men would put them through, the last sight that graced their eyes would be the faceless, brutal assassin. An assassin that had taken everything away from them, had forced them to witness horrific acts before ending their lives, their souls trapped forever in the pain of what their eyes last looked upon.

The leering smile.

The luminous smile vanished abruptly, replaced by horrified shock. His head slowly, slowly lowered, his gaze dropped to his stomach.

Or where his stomach used to be.

She stood before him, her breaths coming out controlled, slightly heavy, muscles tensed from the vicious, fatal stroke she had just delivered across his abdomen.

The last thing the man saw before he dropped was the sight of his own entrails, long, stringy, squishy, a thick blackness slowly pumping itself out of his exposed stomach, large unwieldy sack-shapes following as his insides vomited themselves out, following the blood as it oozed out in a mess, not even having time to coagulate and thicken into a congealed mess.

She had leapt away before he'd even dropped, face-first, into the ground.

Shadows, just like shadows materialising, gaining flesh and blood, they seemed to spring up before her. But her mind had shut itself out – it forced her to focus on one, only the one before her, and pay no heed to the multitudes of other emerging shapes. Altogether, the assassins couldn't have numbered more than perhaps six or seven, but in that darkness, in that close, heated air around him in the closed in forest, they could have been limitless for all the three young women cared.

In her mind, she saw a woman, an elderly woman, bruises forming on her face, her body tortured with cigarette burns, the blankness in her eyes replaying again and again the vicious torture of her husband …

And she looked upon the shadow before her, and that glazed hardness coated her vision.

_Was it you? Are you the one who tortured and brutally murdered a gentle old man in front of his wife? _

Metal upon metal clashed as the man drew up his sword, his jaw setting, teeth gritting as he held it in place, diagonal to hers. The enormous bulk of his body leaned forwards, applying great pressure to the junction of their two swords, and he was able to stare directly into his enemy's eyes. He was only a few inches away from her eyes.

And when he saw her eyes, his grip almost faltered.

Because there was nothing there, in those deep, blue depths. They were empty …

His scream joined the other cries in the air, lost in the loud gust of hot wind that had descended and was now sweeping through the forest. As soon as she'd sunk the katana into his chest, she spun around, sensing the murderous intent of another assassin directly behind her, the fury of a man who had seen his comrade go down in one of the most vicious ways possible.

Then his eyes locked with hers.

_And what about you … Perhaps it was you brutalized that young girl while her parents and brother were tied and gagged in the next room, so they could hear her screaming and screaming … _

He however was ready for her. He'd seen the deathly accurate and fast movements, and he twisted behind her, his own speed rivaling hers. Sparks seemed to fly with the sheer force their katanas clashed, metal scrapings falling away upon the contact.

But the image was on instant reply in her mind. She could see nothing except a white haze, changing to red, then white again, now red … the girl's body when she and her team had burst in …

He gasped, caught unawares as she moved with unsuspected some devilish speed. He'd only had time to turn his head slightly, just that little bit to see her run up halfway against the sturdy trunk of a tree a short distance from him. Saw her crouch, her feet still firmly planted along the height of the trunk, her lithe body poised, the flash as the katana steadied …

No time, no time to move as she flew, slicing through the air, the tip of a deadly blade piercing through the man's next, the lethal speed and thrust with which she had propelled the katana, severing the tips of his spinal cord.

He was dead before he hit the ground.

Grabbing the hilt of the sword, she yanked it violently from his neck, and then saw the shadow which had leapt from nowhere, the shadow which was now advancing upon the back of one of her girls, the unsuspecting soft-spoken beauty who was engaged in her own fight, against the onslaught of yet another of these monstrous giants.

And then as rage filled her, her mind supplied yet another image, yet another atrocity that had been seen and stored away …

A boy … a boy perhaps no older than the sweet little one she had at home …

The air screamed around her with the speed she reached the coward. The man turned momentarily to see a flash of black, of gold and of silver reach him. He barely had time to raise his katana to deflect the charge she was making at him, the enraged, inhuman accompanying scream of fury.

_And perhaps you … you might have been the one who set alight that little boy and hung him from the front of his house … _

And once again, the image of the enormous brown eyes, the beautiful, vibrant little boy she had at home rose, unbidden, to her mind. She knew … she knew that someone had come home that day, perhaps someone like her … they had come home to their own little boy only to see an atrocity done to him that was unspeakable … unthinkable …

She could only imagine what her own actions would be if she had seen that done to her own little boy …

Shock and surprise took over the man when he saw she had suddenly lowered her katana, that she had darted behind him. His momentary surprise, his hesitation was enough. The next thing he was aware of was the broad, flat and dulled hilt of a katana pressed against his back – not the tip of the blade but the direct opposite end, the hilt which the user held.

Then a small but surprisingly strong and firm hand pressed against his chest, right against his heart. It was only when he felt the small hand apply pressure against him, when he felt himself being propelled backwards with amazing force and speed, that he realized what she was doing …

But again, his surprise once again having taken over his reactions, his senses, he didn't respond, couldn't move …

The katana had been at right angles to his body with the blade outwards. The tip of the blade had met the strong, stout and perfectly unyielding branch of a tree, and the speed and force with which she had pushed him against the handle of the katana had caused a terrible, awful shock.

He could only scream and scream as the jarring force reached his spine, as the katana's long blade still quivered from the force with which it had been jolted against the tree trunk. The fatal shudder had carried all the way through, into the man's spine.

She let him fall, and she leapt away, knowing that he would never rise again. That his screaming would go on forever and ever, and that that was all he would ever be able to do for the rest of his life, unless someone else took pity on him and put him out of his misery.

Close by, the rose-haired girl shuddered to her feet, staggering slightly as she breathed hard, clutching her right shoulder which had unknowingly caught the tip of a slicing blade. She forced her lungs to slow down, her blue-green eyes staring from the figure who had just leapt away, to the man, to the ear-piercing, shrill screams coming from him, while the rest of his body was as still as if it could be dead.

_She's … severed his spinal cord … she's broken all connections from his brain to the rest of his body … _

_… So she finally mastered it … _

As she watched the young woman leap away and engage another shadowy assassin, Haruno Sakura had never understood why this young woman had been so determined to master that technique. When she had heard it described, when she had read in her textbook what jarring the human spine at exactly the correct angle would do to that victim, she had been horrified.

But then deep blue eyes had quietly turned upon her, and examined her for a while, so intense that Sakura became uncomfortable, unconsciously terrified of having seen something in those blue eyes that she knew, she positively knew shouldn't be there. The young woman had beckoned, and turned, walking out of the current hospital office they'd been in.

Confused, hesitant and somewhat frightened, Sakura had followed the young woman. Down corridors, into a smaller section of the hospital she had never ventured because she just hadn't been required there, ever. She noticed that as she continued, something in the very air seemed different. It wasn't that this area looked like it wasn't inhabited much – it was more something dark, something thick and engulfing. Something else lived here besides the patients.

And then Sakura had stepped into Ward OP, a ward name she had read many times in some of the hospital record forms, but she had just casually flicked over, it seemed nothing interesting. It was just an out-patient (OP) ward, so these people didn't need intensive care. And she and the doctors and nurses had enough to worry about anyway. These people were evidently fine …

It took only a few minutes in that closed off ward for Sakura to realize several things. The first was that death was the only hope that ruled this place. In each and everyone's eyes was the fervent expectation and trust that death would finally come, because only that could relieve them of their pain. No words, no gentleness, no time. Their souls had already died within them. The only things alive in their minds were scenes on continuous replay, burning and burning horrific imagery, on top of a previous one, again and again and again.

There were a few nurses here, moving in between beds and closed off areas, where curtains had been pulled. The place was spotless, just like the main wards. It was evident someone was looking after this place, but …

An old woman, lying back in her pristine white bed, the sheets so white and clean they hurt to look at. Something had died in her eyes, and on parts of her arms, Sakura's breath caught in her throat as she saw burns … cigarette burns …

A smaller family, a mother sitting listlessly by her son as he sat up in bed. The father lying in a bed next to his wife and son, gazing up at nothing in the ceiling. The little boy holding a photo frame in his hands, and his eyes empty. Dry. There was nothing left inside him to cry.

Sakura had turned around. And she had looked into Danah's eyes …

… And seen nothing there.

That was all Sakura had needed to see, wanted to see before she had turned abruptly, and raced out into the corridor. That's when her tears had started, that's when something so painful, so horrible had flowered inside her that she felt she couldn't bear it. What happened to these people? There's so many in there … what happened …?

A soft, wrinkled hand had alighted on her shoulder, and Sakura had turned, tearful, and looked up into blue eyes. They too, were empty, but they were still beautiful.

"They're families who have lived around the Fire Country. When the soldiers and shinobi from the surrounding countries get bored of having no one else to torture, they make a trip here."

Horror upon horror was building up inside the young girl, and her hands flew to her mouth. But Danah continued, gravely, emotionlessly. A bitter, twisted grim smile tilted her lips horribly.

"War has always been senseless, but this kind of thing … I can't, and I will never understand. Man who has always wanted to brutalise his own kind, man who has always taken sadistic pleasure in seeing his own kind writhing, screaming, agonizing in pain …" A bitter, humourless laugh had escaped her parched lips.

"Someone has to look after them. You couldn't stay there a few minutes, my dear. Neither could anyone else, anyone with any sense or feeling left in them. Because anyone who did, would become like those people. Empty. Soulless."

Danah had abruptly turned, and pushed the double doors, back into the ward. And Sakura had heard her barely whispered words before she had disappeared.

_"As I have …" _

And it was after that, that the rose-haired girl began to understand the slow, painful, subtle change that had come over the young woman. It had been coming on slowly, but Sakura couldn't trace when it had begun. At first, it had started almost three years ago, when a light had dimmed down in her eyes as she'd said goodbye to the boy she had raced back home for … to the little boy who had suffered intolerably in his own growing up … but it was after that when a steep slope had put her careening downwards. Something else had happened …

Shocked by the emptiness, the brutality, the unhesitating way she moved, she acted, and by the cloud of her own pain, Sakura didn't immediately register the approaching horror.

Her head turned, with an almost painful slowness, dulled by terror; as if her consciousness had already sensed the approaching terrifying level of chakra, and had decided to shut off its senses rather than face it. But her head turned, nonetheless, and blue-green eyes, darkened with pain and desperation, widened in frozen horror.

He was leering, teeth showing up starkly white as his enormous body poised, both hands gripping an enormous sword, arms raised above his head as he prepared, even in mid-air, to slice the girl in half.

Danah had turned slowly as well, her own eyes widening, her senses screaming in shock as she saw a monster bear down upon her own teammate. But she had seen something else …

A blur.

Something that wasn't a shadow, something that barely seemed to have substance, with the terrifying speed with which it had moved. But in essence, something that was indeed true flesh and blood, something lithe, and slender and beautiful, but deadly. Terrifyingly deadly …

The speed was so fast, dizzying to the eye that Danah blinked, and in that split second it took her mind to process who it was, she had already turned away, parrying a would-have-been vicious blow while she had turned away from a new attacker. She didn't have to worry about defending Sakura …

The enormous giant bearing down upon Sakura must have sensed something ethereal, something otherworldly approaching, because he committed a first-class mistake.

He hesitated. And turned his head.

Fast. She was fast. A blur of midnight black and silvery-white. The mask hid her face, but the delicate grace and flawless accuracy of her movements – he never had time to admire or appreciate them.

Hovering in mid-air, her body so sinewy and light, it was as if the very air was willingly holding her up. A sudden eerie electric blue-green glow sparked up around her entire right hand, which she drew up towards her left shoulder …

… and brought it down in a fluid, swift slicing motion …

_"CHUUSUUSEI SHIKEIKIDEN!"(CENTRAL NERVOUS SYSTEM ELECTRICAL SHOCK) _

So powerful was her control of chakra, that wasted as she was, as fatigued as all three young women were, her mastering of the fatal medical ninjutsu was so perfect, that it only needed the air to transmit it, full force, to her opponent … that same air which seemed to carry her on its invisible wings so cheerfully, so willingly …

Sakura watched, fearful, as the man's face contorted in confusion, fury and pain, and managed to leap out of the way as he fell forwards, face down into the dust, his body twitching and writhing hideously.

She felt her rescuer land lightly beside her, and felt her body relax as her companion gently placed her hand on her shoulder.

"Sakura-san, I don't think either Danah-san or myself have enough left to heal you. Perhaps you had better stay by my side, for now …"

A small smile tilted the rose-haired girl's lips. "Thank you, Hinata-sama …"

But both were thinking, wondering at Hinata's words. _For now …? What exactly does 'for now' mean … and until when …? _

_Because … because … _

_… No one is coming to help us … _

The thought was now firmly inside the girls' minds, even as a barrage of short kunai came flying through the air from the thick grove of trees, even as Hinata placed her arm around Sakura's shoulder, and they both leapt swiftly to one side, into the shade and safety of the branches.

Deep blue eyes lifted, rose and gazed up at the blackness above.

Above her, the inky black night sky stared back down, empty of its million sparkling watchful eyes, the ancient inhabitants that had looked down for centuries upon centuries. And tonight, empty. Nothing.

"See? One can't really see the stars when it's dark …"

A grim smile touched her lips as the thick rain droplets now intensified. Even as the closeness of the air with the strange thunderstorm became more and more apparent, her mind and her body moved mechanically. Automatically.

And yet, somewhere inside, a place within where all feeling had gone some time ago, something throbbed. And yearned …

Where was everyone … what has happened to us all, these last few years? The times when a platoon always, always, had a back-up team ready, where that platoon knew they could count on them to arrive, to burst in at that last minute when we'd all lost hope, only to find it burning again … the way the leaves burned and the shadows danced …

Gone are our Elite, our pride and joy … scattered, all around this country, and infiltrating neighbouring countries too … and to replace them, our standard four-man teams have been both reduced and expanded – reduced in skill, which is made up for by having expanded the numbers. Now we have more people's backs to watch …

It was when her katana felled the man before her, as his screams eventually died away into horrendously writhing moans, as the last few fatally acidic contents of his stomach oozed around his surrounding organs from the brutal cut … it was at that instant that she realized something else had descended upon that quiet clearing.

Unconsciously, she felt herself stepping backwards, sandaled feet carrying her slowly to the centre of the clearing, where she could feel Sakura and Hinata join her in a similar manner.

And it was then, when that deep, gravelly voice sliced through the thick, blind silence, that for the first time that night, she felt her blood chill.

For as the owner of that voice stepped out of shadow, it wasn't the leering grin that curdled her insides. It was the mass upon mass of shadow, rising up, behind him …

"Well done, well done … indeed, Princess, you have done very well. Three of you again seven of my best frontmen, may I add. And so admirably, the speed and skill with which you have taken them down … commendable, highly commendable …"

She heard someone gasp and step up closer against her back. It seemed the girls were only now realizing the twenty or thirty tall, huge giants who seemed to materialize out of the air, as if stepping directly from shadow and acquiring flesh, blood … and sword. Enormous, terrifying meaty swords brandished from thick, beefy arms and hands.

"Yes, we were told you three in particular were something special. And as you may know … medical shinobi are a rare occurrence these days, especially –" Here a blood-curdling, humourless laugh escaped his thin lips – "Since they seem to have a habit of just … how shall I say – disappearing from the Hidden Villages? Oh, I wonder now, I really wonder …"

The man's voice was chilling, horrifying in its grating, harsh, gravely tone. It went right underneath her skin, and the accompanying sight with it …

"Yes, yes, such a pity the way they seem in such short supply … but as my men were so – so colourfully describing to me … we truly hadn't been expecting such beautiful young women. In fact, I would say – " And here, a leer as he glanced slowly across to his right and left – "That capturing a medical shinobi is a bonus, but anything beyond that is an added bonus, wouldn't you say?"

A low growling murmur, that could have been anything between wicked, evil, chilling laughter or …

And all the time, something built up inside her, something painful and raw … her chest was tight, her breathing constricted … wells of tears sprung up from some dark place within …

"I am sure, my beautiful ladies, you will, in between your duties, have ample time to … shall I say … entertain us –"

It didn't burst from her. The savage incivility and crudery she was capable of these days had not so much been building up inside her as they had more become a part of her, ingrained into her own being, however terrible that was. The only thing was that it was something she fought hard to keep from showing in front of others …

"Fuck you."

The silence was electric. Even the two backs pressed up against hers stiffened, and she could almost imagine the horrified looks, the shocked blue-green and silvery-white eyes, perhaps the blush on Hinata's face. But Danah was past caring. Way past all that …

She raised her eyes. If indeed he could have seen them, something different may have happened … but he couldn't see them.

The man seemed to regain his composure somewhat, and his blood-chilling chuckle was accompanied by more growling laughter from behind him.

"Well well … I would reply, 'Gladly' – however – "

Her entire body tensing, she had made a move to leap at him before Hinata had given a strangled gasp and swiftly wrapped her fingers around Danah's arm.

"However, I am tempted to say first … what, oh what would your brother think if he heard his beautiful onee-chan say something so vulgar?"

Danah froze. This time, as if for real, every pore of her skin froze, and her lungs seemed to forget to draw breath …

Evil, vicious laughter. "That's right. It's just you and him left now, isn't it, pretty little one? After Daddy so willingly – oh, so willingly – gave his life for this village, leaving his children as orphans …"

Most of his words had drowned within her, the blood pounding with terrifying ferocity in her head. She was shaking violently, and not from fear either …

His words were like repeated, brutal slashes across her skin, revealing wound after wound after wound … the pounding in her head dulled, and each sentence he uttered settled themselves like a slow-working poison in her pained, sore, scarred soul …

"Yes, yes, little princess … I know of how you ran away ... ten years in that mountain with that old goat …" A wicked smirk. "Come now, was it really the sign of a good sister, abandoning her little brother to the wolves like that?"

No … no it wasn't, but …

"I know of the man you love ..."

She froze.

"Oh yes, which self-respecting ninja in all the countries has not heard of Captain Hatake Kakashi, the only son of the White Fang himself …? I know of how he has gone, disappeared … what is it now, almost a year? Two years? Doesn't he love you anymore?"

Breathing … so tight, I can't …

"Oh yes … a very talented one, that. In ten years, how many jutsus has he learned? More than a thousand ... and it's not only that Sharingan eye - you need real TALENT for his type of accomplishments, you know. Talent."

His last word was spat out, an accompanying jeering, maniacal laughter.

"Yes, indeed, princess! Even your brother, in the few years since he graduated from the Academy and from when he left, learned a great many jutsus … that seemingly good-for-nothing brat, holding no trait, no bloodline inheritance, bottom of his class … amazing, truly amazing the speed and talent with which he picks up and masters jutsus. But you …"

Another smirk. He held up his hands. Long sinuous fingers, slightly off colour, spread out.

"I can count all the jutsus you've acquired in only both the fingers of these two hands. And that's in all the miserable years of your life. You and Captain Hatake Kakashi, both twenty-somethings, and yet … look at the universe of difference between you both. You ran away from Konoha, you abandoned your village to leave to get stronger, and he stayed on – you left even that boy you loved behind, alone. When all your friends died, one after the other, where were you to comfort him? Hmm? Who was truly the one who got stronger? Eh? Now, surely that sounds pathetic, even to you, does it not …?"

And the laughter started up again, and this time he was joined by the faceless shadows behind him, covering every retreat angle from that small forest clearing. Laughter that escalated, went on and on …

Her body had stopped shaking. Some time ago, in fact. Although she could feel the fury from the girls behind her, her heart had settled into its rhythmic beat.

She stepped forwards. The men tensed, but the jeering laughter didn't stop.

A slender hand rose to her face, fingers tightly holding the sides of the mask … Then she slid it off, and let it fall to the dust beside her.

The laughter died down, and they stared at her.

Through his visor, his eyes narrowed. He stared at the young woman standing before him. The slender, willowy body of a ninja, the kind that becomes one with the wind, the kind that could fly. Long golden hair cascading down her back, strands of faded sunlight that the wind suddenly touched, and started to play with.

He had known of her beauty … the beauty her mother and grandmother were so renowned for ... but …

_She looks … she looks like she's aged … her eyes – they look so much older … and they're so … so empty, as if she stopped feeling. Something cold and bitter has taken over her soul, from within … _

_… as if so many worries have landed on her ... _

Then he smirked.

Well … it isn't really her appearance that we care about … as long as she does her job of healing our ranks after we capture these three and take them back. Although …

"It's all right. My men don't really have to look into that aged and withered-looking face when you're entertaining them. Or even if we give you to one of those now notorious whorehouses; one year on your back, and you could pay a king's ransom, especially if everyone knew who you were!"

The loud jeering, guffawing of the men seemed to penetrate into every shadowy area of the thick forest, ringing through her head, her ears. The sudden movement behind her, the gasps of shock and anger, the tensing of their bodies. But Danah raised an arm, holding them back. The smile never left her face.

She raised her other arm that held the katana, and let it fall to the ground.

Now she stood, tall, slender … and defenceless, the weapon she had used now lying in the dust.

She locked eyes with the man. And she still hadn't stopped smiling.

"Well. You know all about me, it seems. And not only that, every single thing you've said is right. Whatever your source of information was, it's been spot on. I commend you for that …"

Furious and confused gasps from behind her. She ignored them.

"Though you have such a low opinion of me, you seem to have spent considerable time and energy in locating your information about me. Now, I wonder … why?"

Only a sharp eye would have noticed the slow degrees to which her body had been tensing, standing poised, as if something was coming, something building. And he noticed it now.

"I'm not denying that what you're saying is true. That my abilities are only second, or even third-rate compared to the top Elite of Konoha. I'm not denying that I have always known this, either."

Uncertain tenseness from the girls behind her, which, with a little sad smile, she decided to ignore.

"But it is obvious for all your long-windedness and gasbagging, you have never actually fought me …"

Slowly, her left hand rose, a little forwards and above her head. Something electric tingled in the air, and even he tensed.

"That's just as well, because when I had been a real proper shinobi, I could boast on at least one particular point just as well as ANBU Captain Hatake Kakashi ..."

Something truly shifted within her eyes, because as he watched, it seemed they had suddenly gone black … black with rage …

And as she spoke, the raised hand slowly began to lower in an arc ... leaving in its wake, a careful controlled line of curved electric blue-green chakra ... she had traced the arc of a circle from her fingers …

Suddenly sensing the power of that chakra, he stepped backwards. _What the … how could she have … _

Now a tall curved arc of chakra had formed, the top reaching just a little above her own height. Her hand movements had stopped halfway down the arc, but the chakra continued on its path, all the way down to her feet, as if drawn by an invisible hand.

Then suddenly, Danah's fingers curled around the direct middle of the chakra arc at arm's length … because suddenly, it had become firm and solid. And a thin, barely visible line formed, connecting the top and bottom arcs in a vertical line …

What on earth …?

She paid no attention to the gasps, but her eyes remained locked in their blackness with the man, and her voice was as even as ever.

"I could boast, that no enemy who has ever encountered me, _has ever lived to escape_ …"

He stared at her, stared at the giant blue-green chakra arc she was holding. The curve reminded him of something, but what …?

He unconsciously tensed again as her right arm rose, but this time only to her shoulder level. Holding her fingers up before him, he noticed how they were curled, as if holding something invisible … something that was like a short rod …

"I would like to say THAT is why you have never heard of me …"

Then he gasped as a thin blue-green line formed from between the fingers of her right hand … something that was straight and tall, and pointed at the end. Even despite it being made of chakra, the arrow that had materialized between her fingers was as real and tipped and deadly … streams of precious, deadly chakra swirling, racing throughout the form she maintained …

A quick, elegant twist of her fingers, and the arrow was now balanced between her two fingers, as she placed it mid-way down the giant chakra arc …

… the bow.

Meeting her eyes, he hissed. "What's this? You're not meant to have enough energy! Not meant to have any chakra left!"

She smiled, a smirk tilting her hers as she took aim with her beautiful, shimmering blue-green bow and arrow.

"It's true. When your men fought us, we didn't have chakra left. Literally, we decimated them with our bare hands."

The beautiful enormous bow was shifted, straightened, and the gleaming chakra arrow rose. Squinting, closing one eye, she gazed down to its tip, aiming it directly at him, noting with some satisfaction that he had tensed, that beads of sweat had formed on his visible skin.

"Let me show you something. You're very honoured tonight, because you get to be the first to actually see this. To those ten or so jutsus of mine you counted in your hands, add an eleventh. My chakra bow …"

And the tide had shifted, the tables had turned. Because standing before him now weren't three defenceless young women. Her posture, the sudden straightness of her body, the smile in her lips. Even the strange glow of the blue-green chakra bow-and-arrow upon her face …

"You know, in that other world, they talk of a 'magic bullet' ... an instrument that always finds its target …"

While her voice, soft and light, spoke casually, easily, she set the arrow. The thin line of chakra that had connected the top and bottom of the arc became taut … it was the string of the chakra bow …

"Likewise, I guide my arrows right into their targets, no matter how hard you try to run."

He stared at her. Tall, elegant. And suddenly beautiful. It was as if, in the short time between, years had fallen away from her. Now, what was standing before him was the lovely young woman they had talked so much of.

"It's true that I don't have many jutsus. But what I spent my years learning, is to completely and fully master the ones that I do know. And yes, it took me three years to learn this one new technique, three years in which others would have mastered so many more. And I make no excuses for my abilities. I do only what I can, and with what Kami-sama has given and decided for me. Nothing more."

Tensing her arm further, a grim smile settled on her features. Shifting her foot into position, her sandal scraped slightly against the ground. "I have been raised to always be part of a team. It was evident from the earliest that I was never to be an outstanding shinobi, as far as talent and abilities went. So I was trained to be the stopgap, to fill in holes and help make a team whole. I believe that that itself, is something precious …"

Suddenly, Hinata's soft fingers were on her arm, the girl's panicked whisper against her ear.

"Danah-san … pl-please don't do it! You know you don't have enough chakra left to take out all of them … and Sakura and I don't have, either … we can't – we can't …"

Danah's eyes flickered. Yes she knew. She was fully aware that this was one of the oldest tricks – fire a terrifying-looking attack to frighten the enemy into doing something silly enough, so that the truth would be hidden … the truth that the defending side had just given it their all.

Her eyes narrowed. And hardened. There's only one thing to do then …

Slender, wearied fingers flexed, tightened their hold on the arrow. Her returning whisper was low, carried only to the ears of the two young women beside her.

"I'm sorry, Hinata … but no way are we going to let ourselves be taken. Even if I fall, you and Sakura must, at all costs, escape immediately and make your way towards the village. If the back-up team is indeed arriving, they will meet you half-way. I was assigned your Captain, and no way am I letting anything happen to you …"

Ignoring Hinata's strangled, shocked gasp, she pulled back the arrow. The whisper that escaped her lips was almost deathly.

"Chakra Kasen-Yumiya …" _(CHAKRA FIRE ARROW)_

Yells, screams of surprise filled the close air of the small clearing as the clear arrow suddenly left her bow, the air screaming as it sliced effortlessly through it.

And as the arrow left her bow, her heart suddenly dampened … all the tears that had accumulated that night now lay heavy within her. And now …

Lost … abandoned …

All of them, all of those good men who have looked after us, and whom we have in turn been looking after …

Told, ordered to leave immediately … what happened to them? In what fate did we leave them …?

Hinata's breathing was heavy, her entire body tensed. Quivering fingers clutched at Danah's shoulder, the thin black material strap of her ANBU uniform. Her own eyes wide with nervous anxiety, panic … then she happened to glance up.

She was crying …

Blue eyes that had suddenly become young again … as if, with the tears coursing down her face, the years were falling away again. She was still just a girl, after all. Like with so many of Konoha's sons and daughters, she had aged before her time, she had become, to them and so many others, a mother before she had finished being a child, a sister before she had finished being a daughter, the old voice of wisdom before she had fully, properly fallen in love to be married even …

Danah's own sobs sounded so loud and soft to her own ears. But she ignored them. It was her heart that was twisting, breaking, hurting … as she thought of them, thought of all of those men … it broke a little more each time.

**_Where have all the good men gone  
And where are all the gods? _**

The vision of her tall, beautiful silver-haired god … now gone so long … so long she could barely remember … barely remember …

**_Where's the street-wise Hercules  
To fight the rising odds? _**

The last time they had seen Asuma, the cheerful, cheeky grin, the cigarette dangling from his lips, his deep laughter … the fond way he'd pat Chouji on the back, the cheeky way he'd tug at Shikamaru's hair while the young Chuunin captain scowled …

**_Isn't there a white knight upon a fiery steed? _**

The giant of Myoubokou Mountain … the ancient Frog Hermit … the man whom she had known, despite all his ridiculous eccentricities, she could always, always rely on … Jiraiya's long, streaming white hair, power and strength contained in his tall frame …

**_Late at night I toss and turn and dream  
Of what I need … _**

Even as the man's screams filled the air, even as the chakra arrow twisted, swirled, spiraled in the wind, even as it spun ridiculously around his enormous sword, even as his henchmen watched in paralysed shock, even as it found its target, she prepared her body … her knees bent slightly, any minute now prepared for flight. One hand finding quivering fingers, her other hand alighting on a slender shoulder, the two young partners beside her.

"When I tell you to move, you move, understand?"

She could feel their sudden shock, the sharp movement at the corners of her eyes witnessing the girls turning to stare at her, aghast.

"No … no, you can't –"

"We won't let –"

She gritted her teeth. Her voice dropped. "That's a direct order from your captain. Are you going to disobey an order?"

Silence. Only their numb, shocked, horrified, anxious silence.

"You know what Captain Jakuchu-sensei's orders were. You know how important we – you – are to the hospital right now. We're the last field platoon team left; they can't afford to lose anymore –"

That was when she felt the thick mass of bodies turn towards them. The sharp outlines of white teeth as they settled into a now-familiar sneer. Even as their leader went down, writhing on the grass as the deadly chakra arrow found its target, they moved, as if of one body, towards the three …

"NOW!"

**_I need a hero! _**

Even as the girls leapt, even as their souls screamed 'NO! Don't leave her!', their years of training in high-level ANBU had taken over any other sense. When their Captain gave them an order …

**_I'm holding out for a hero  
'Til the end of the night … _**

She'd tricked them … even as her body had prepared to fly through the air, she had instead fallen to her knees, her hands flat against the dusty ground …

_One more … _

_I have room for one more before … before … _

_It will at least give them time to get away, unless they are fool enough to try and return … _

_I don't know if I really have any left … _

_But I can always hope … _

_That, I can always … always … _

_The same way I can always hope that someone will leap in, that someone will arrive, just as they always have in my fairy tales in the past … _

**_He's gotta be strong  
And he's gotta be fast  
And he's gotta be fresh from the fight! _**

Her fingers curled, nails cutting into the ground as her teeth clenched, her jaw tightened. Every last fibre of her energy summoned …

"Hijutsu …"

Just as the first wave of the forwards ranks reached her, the ground exploded around their feet … one of my first and favourite jutsus …

"DORYUUDAN KAGE GENKAKU!"(SECRET JUTSU: EARTH DRAGON SHADOW ILLUSION)

Horrendous ... magnificent ... giant …

An enormous dragon, made from the pure, raw earth ...

Sand was still falling away from the carefully sculpted giant scales on its powerful, rippling body, superb giant wings spread out in its murderous glory, its mouth a deep, bottomless cavern as it roared and roared again in fury ...

Only its eyes – its eyes were two points of intense, glowing, pulsing orbs …

Blue ... bright blue skies …

A body tied to an earthly domain, its mind to a heavenly one …

**_I need a hero!  
I'm holding out for a hero  
'Til the morning light … _**

Roar after thunderous roar, its giant wings outspread … Its long, sinuous, rippling muscled body flexed, tensed …

And it had been enough. The sheer force and massive size, the dust swirling in the air around it had been enough to cause a temporarily blind to the shadowy enemy while the two girls leapt, vanishing into the darkness of the trees beside the clearing. And the mass of the body had also been enough to deflect the flurry of weapons – she heard the sickening thuds as kunai and swords which had been flung at them were caught by the body of the Earth Dragon, the dull sounds as the tips of the would-have-been deadly blades instead found themselves buried in the moving earth, the body of the dragon.

The dragon lunged. The snarling mouth, with its gaping, infinite black hole, towered directly over a terrified knot of shadowy assassins …

Her entire body was now quivering uncontrollably, but even through her pain, her desperate realisation that this was her chance to get away, she couldn't help the mirth bubbling up inside …

They're just second-rate mercenaries after all … any idiot can see it's genjutsu … the ultimate diversionary tactic –

"You little whore."

Her head snapped up. There, looming directly before her, a massive, towering giant.

The tip of his katana pointed right at her.

"Did you think we came to just mess around with you?"

And beyond his tall stature, the black thick midnight sky looked down upon her, emotionless, grave, unseeing …

She didn't often pray for a miracle. Didn't often expect that Kami-sama would send one of his angels … those were just dreams in her fantasy, after all. _But I was always able to dream … at least, I could do that … _

**_He's gotta be sure  
And it's gotta be soon  
And he's gotta be larger than life! _**

_Every step … almost every step of my miserable life, I have always been able to hope, and wish. I could always pray that one day I could see a miracle, at least once before I die. So why not this night? _

_Why not this night, surely the last night of my life? _

And even as he advanced closer, as the tip of his blade was only a few inches from her face, even then, she felt she could see a rainfall of kunai, a close, shimmering silver curtain descending between herself and this monster. Even in the midst of this horror, her fairytale was weaving itself into her imagination. Even now, her stupid dreams were cruelly mingling themselves into her vision, to make her believe that her silly fairytale fantasies were coming true …

She blinked.

_If it is a fairytale, why do these kunai embedded in the ground in front of me feel and look so real? _

"What are you doing! What is this witchcraft?! You crazy whore, you stupid little bitch what are you _doing_!"

Another haze was over her eyes as she looked up at the monstrous man, and to her shock, he too had stopped, and was staring down at the ground. His helmet had somehow been broken, the whites of his eyes enormous. Indeed, it seemed the shimmering curtain of silver was as if touched by another world … _What …? He can see them too? But it's MY fairytale … _

"Well … that isn't the way to speak to a lady …"

"Yeah, you disgusting piece of shit."

**_Larger than life … _**

Voices.

Half-remembered, deep, dark, rumbling, pleasant voices. Half –remembered …

Electric. If the air hadn't already been electric before, with the hot, close, unnatural weather, then it had suddenly skyrocketed …

Already the electric shock had passed through the men in the clearing, and they stood, tensed, heads turning left, right, wary eyes searching half fearful, half defiant and furious for the voice …

However, she herself shouldn't have lost her focus. The short reprieve that had come as the man was distracted should probably have been enough for her to have gotten away. Whatever it was that had interrupted … she couldn't tell what it was; she could sense nothing outside of this deadly circle. That's good, at least … whoever those voices were, at least it wasn't the girls. At least it means the girls have probably gotten away –

In that split-second, she sensed Hinata's deadly senbon slicing their way through the air, the wind screaming as it was viciously cut with the sheer speed of the throw.

As she managed to leap swiftly backwards, she cursed in her mind. _Damn those girls! Didn't I tell them to leave! _

Again, her focus was elsewhere, a shock going through her mind as she sensed a figure away to her right … Sakura and Hinata had come to work well together in the past few years, and now she could sense Sakura about to complete Hinata's attack sequence …

And now the beautiful, slender figure was leaping, an incredible speed she had built up … Sakura was merely a blur against the dim sky, a struggle to make out her figure against the strange wind that blew into their eyes.

But when her fists hit the ground, they knew.

Tightly clenched, swirling with a deadly strength … from the shock waves that she felt even as she leapt into the air a split-second before the impact, Danah could tell that both fists had slammed into the ground …

An ear-shattering, tearing sound, a yawning growl as the earth split open, a strange hiss as the crack went tearing in both directions … a screaming, ripping sound as the dry soil rose up in an enormous wave. Danah seriously doubted even Tsunade-sama, at Sakura's age, could have produced such an effect, especially after being so completely drained …

She'd already shut her eyes tightly prior to witnessing the impact, and before her feet had forcefully left the shattering earth, trusting her instincts in the little she'd visualised of the landscape behind her. However, the dust still soaked its way into her throat, and she gasped, feeling an alarming faltering in her body as she hurtled backwards through the air …

… All making her a prime target.

Danah didn't see the brutal slicing motion of the blade until she felt it, directly on her arm. The man had already felt the full impact of Hinata's senbon, together with her deadly accurate aim, but somehow, the ogre had managed to scrape his strength together for one last attack – he wasn't going to be taken down alone … Even as she blinked, even as her lips opened, he was already swinging the sword.

She may have screamed – the cut wasn't a superficial one, she could tell it had already penetrated right into the artery. These assholes weren't playing around, but they weren't medical shinobi; this one may have just got a lucky break.

It was around then the white haze started. A film slipping over her eyes, blurry, unfocussed. Now it was starting to affect her hearing … she could almost fancy just after a series of dull thuds and muffled screams in front of her, a soft, gentle, half-remembered voice against her ear … the fantasy was starting, now that the final few minutes were nearing …

**_Somewhere after midnight  
In my wildest fantasy … _**

Yes, there it was again, her miserable dreams … now she definitely was dreaming the feeling of being collected into strong arms, pressed against a warm, reliable body … the haze must be completely clouding all her senses, not just sight and hearing. Now her touch was being affected … my stupid fairytale fantasies …

**_Somewhere just beyond my reach  
There's someone reaching back for me … _**

"Hold it there, princess. It might be time to let us handle this."

Blackness. A buzzing in her ear, a warmth against her body … his strong arms tightly, tenderly, firmly holding her …

And this voice … this beautiful, soft voice …

_It feels like … something half-remembered … something so long ago … _

_… Who on earth …? _

And the wind was suddenly slicing, screaming, ripping as the strong body holding her had lifted into the air.

Perhaps it was the sheer force of the wind, hot and sharp against her face that jolted her numbed senses. Because when she opened her eyes, it was to see the world turn around her. Trees, bushes, branches, leaves – they whipped into her line of vision, the little she could see over his shoulder, past his arms; his momentary pause as he crouched, poised for flight again on the branch of a tree, then a flip of her insides as he leapt, soared into the air …

**_Racing on the thunder  
And rising with the heat … _**

"Hold on for a sec, this one's gonna be tricky …"

There wasn't anything left in her to gasp, nothing left to scream. But even if she wanted to, her breath was closed off, the precious gulps of air were purely her breathing reflex. Nothing spare to scream with …

Because he had already anticipated that he was going to miss his footing – he'd already seen the half-dead tree branch jutting out, as if it had been waiting for the unsuspecting shadow ninja to leap onto it, only to treacherously give way.

But this man had already seen it …

His arms had tightened unconsciously around her, fixing her firmly against him as his light feet barely brushed the decayed branch …

… And the scream that couldn't escape her exploded inside her as her world turned upside down; a swift somersault, powerful movements as he swung right underneath the branch, momentarily balanced upside-down, only the soles of his sandals touching the branch, the old chakra training coming into effect, before the fastest, most agile and skilful leap to land precariously against the lightweight branches of a neighbouring tree, and then, once again, airborne …

**_It's gonna take a superman  
To sweep me off my feet! _**

And now, suddenly he was landing, an enormous dust-cloud billowing up behind him as he forced a landing in another larger clearing of the thick forest. Sandaled feet skidded roughly, then forced a shuddering halt as his momentum slowed, then stopped completely.

Silence.

Slowly, gently, with the most softest tenderness he placed her upon the ground, crouching down. Her fatigued body once again worked on automatic, her limbs forcing feeling back into them, forcing her to collect her damages and continue to move on, to press on, that she couldn't rely on her wonderful, wonderful angel to carry her the entire way. Pulling her body onto kneeling position, she gasped and choked as normal-flowing air suddenly rushed into her lungs.

A firm, slightly callous hand touched the bare skin of her shoulder through her ANBU uniform, and something quivered in that touch, a strange emotion that seemed to jolt like electricity through her entire being …again, something half-remembered and yet still barely recognizable …

Pained, numbed, her head rose slowly, and deep blue eyes blinked back their veil of blurriness to gaze into the face of her rescuer.

She blinked, trying to clear her eyes … _Who … _

Then suddenly he'd tensed, and glanced over his shoulder.

She heard a low sound, half irritated, half relieved, and a grumble sounding something like, "Took the bastard long enough …"

And before she could work her dry, parched lips to form a question, several things happened at once.

"Come on, we better get off the ground …"

Shifting to her side, he slipped one arm around her shoulder, the other holding tightly to her arm closest to his side, and he helped her rise. Then, half-supporting her and half relying on her own strength, he rose fully to his feet, his knees bent as he steadied himself, and he was flying again, holding and supporting her tightly as she leapt with him. And before she could perceive any more, two swift shadows appeared on either side of them, feet momentarily grazing the ground before they too leapt up, soaring …

And as she sensed their chakras, an unconscious painful knot in her chest dissolved, just like that.

_Hinata … _

_Sakura … _

_They're safe …Oh, Kami-sama … _

_… They're … safe … _

Once again, she felt rather than saw him glance back again over his shoulder, and then a restraining pressure against her body as he guided her and her team towards the branches of an enormous tree.

"Hold on for a bit. We'd better wait for –"

He'd paused, still holding her close to his body, and he turned his head, tensing as he seemed to watch, to wait for something. She heard a small laugh.

"Never mind. He's right behind us."

A strange, strange glow seemed to have settled around the forest. The skies above were doing something strange, because there was an expectant tingle in the air, a chill and at the same time, an unnatural warmth, that jolted through her skin. They were now skimming lightly through the top-most branches of one of the tallest trees, so she was now looking down upon the thick forest canopy. And there was a strange, otherworldly light coming from the sky …

He had momentarily put her down, still supporting her weak body as he'd paused to check behind him for a mysterious figure …

**_Up where the mountains meet the heavens above … _**

Her eyes widened.

**_Out where the lightning splits the sea … _**

… A shadow, a tall, dark silhouette that was suddenly leaping across the tops of and ducking in under the canopy of the trees, now visible, now gone …

**_I can swear that there's someone somewhere  
Watching me … _**

The flashes of weakness that overtook her body now and then caused a painful blinding white vision behind her eyes, and were it not for the powerful arms that supported her, she would have crashed more than once to the treacherous ground below. And yet, through the desperation to get away, through the dangerous territory through this world of green leafy veils, she couldn't help but feel overwhelmed by the incredible raw power she could sense behind her.

It was anger. It was fury. And it was that that was driving him, that strange shadowy unknown figure hurtling through the air, leaping effortlessly across the tops of the trees.

These two men had obviously seen and heard what the girls had gone through, the conversations that had taken place.

All along, they had been watching over them …

**_Through the wind and the chill and the rain … _**

Once more, she chanced a glance over her shoulder. And now the wind was lifting him, and he was hurtling upwards through the air on the invisible wings of the wind, spinning, spinning … soft, light feet came to rest lightly on the very tip of a tree before the wings on his feet sent him hurtling to yet another.

**_And the storm and the flood … _**

Yet another chill swept through her body, tingling from the raw, awesome chakra power behind her. Another quick glance over her shoulder …

**_I can feel his approach … _**

And she saw him pause, tentatively, delicately balanced on the tree … a long way below, she saw furious, swift shadows as they leapt in and out, weaved and dodged between the trees, having already tracked him … but evidently not prepared for what he was about to do next …

Straining her eyes, she saw him crouch, poise himself unsteadily on the light branch. And even from this distance, even through the dimness, she saw his hands come together … a quick, fast, furious movement as he formed a seal …

Enormous raindrops suddenly spattered on her nose, having penetrated even the thick leafy branches, but they may as well have drenched her completely and she wouldn't have noticed.

It was as if the strange electricity in the air collected, gathered, concentrated towards one point; an invisible swirl of energy towards that single, slender figure, balanced on that tree-top …

And then a blowing in her ears and fire in her eyes as she saw him steady himself … his hands reach up to his face, cupping around his lips …

**_Like a fire in my blood! _**

The dim, unhealthy darkness was brutally pierced by an enormous, shimmering ball of red-gold fire; a glowing, living, breathing thing that was born from his very breath, a thing of intense fury and power …

It had all happened so quickly – the pausing crouch on the tree branch, the seals, the eruption of life. It was over quickly before he suddenly leapt again, the speed and strength of his slender body slicing through the air, his body hurtling through the darkness and light sandaled feet brushing against the tips of other trees before coming to land upon another. And one arm thrown out to his side to balance his weight, the other cupped around his lips …

Another breath of fire …

The impact of the fiery being into the ground was literally breath-taking. The force that shuddered throughout the forest, the magnificent explosion as a plume of smoke shot upwards, billowing into an enormous grey bulge, then dissipating with the strange eerie wind that had started up.

But the black knight wasn't finished yet. He was already leaping, already anticipating the movements of the shadowy assassins darting through the dark forest, and was springing into position, breathing deeply, body poised …

**_Like a fire in my blood! _**

And again … the birth of the red dragon from his breath …

**_Like a fire in my blood! _**

Away to the west side … And again …

**_Like a fire in my  
Blood ...! _**

Back across, in a zig-zag pattern, simmering smoke and silence in his wake … And again …

Gradually making his way towards them, but covering their paths. Continuing to watch over them …

**_Hero! _**

Chilling. Tingling. Breath-taking … suddenly he was leaping down from a higher tree, and the strength and power behind the lightness of his body, his cloak billowing out behind him –

"Hey! ASSHOLE! Don't burn the forest down!"

**_I'm holding out for a hero 'til the morning light … _**

She blinked, then turned, gazing up at the silhouette of her rescuer's face. He'd paused while holding her, glancing over his shoulder, an irritated edge to his voice.

**_He's gotta be sure … _**

The girls had also stopped, their eyes also gazing back at the series of giant luminous orange-red flowers that had sprung into deadly bloom behind them. Their ANBU masks covered their expressions, but the frightened, awed tenseness of their bodies gave nothing away …

**_And it's gotta be soon … _**

As the nearest and last blooming flower simmered down, a swift silhouette leapt against it, his outline stark and clear against the brightness behind.

"Move it, moron, get them out of this place."

**_And he's gotta be larger than life! _**

He'd reached them then, and calloused, small and slender fingers wrapped around her wrist, pulling her up, staggering on her weak knees. Everything was a shadow, even when he leaned closer to her. "Hold onto one of us, we have to get –"

But his partner had now taken a deep breath, and his roar drowned out anything else she tried to hear.

"Don't call me a moron, you moron! You're the asshole burning the forest down –"

"Shut UP! We have to get them out of here, there's no time, you stupid –" A shuffling sound, all the pieces of urgency and panic firmly embedded in his movements.

A horrified gasp, as if in realisation. "You didn't … You damned bastard, you _didn't_!"

A furious hiss from the taller dark figure. "I did what I had to do! Now shut up and get them out of here!"

"IDIOT!"

She felt Sakura suddenly drop down beside her, as her rescuer just as suddenly rose, furious, confronting his partner. They were only two tall shadows, mere silhouettes in the darkness, and yet the pure force of their combined panic and anger gave as much form to them as if they had been visible flesh and blood.

"You're meant to capture them, stinkhead! Have you forgotten? You're meant to take them back for interrogation –"

"No, _you_ shut up! They don't know anything. You heard the moron, he was just gasbagging at them – they don't know shit about anything, so you can just –"

A heavy silence. The figure suddenly stepped forwards, grabbing the taller man's shoulders. "That's no reason to go and plant a bloody _bomb_ in the forest!"

Now the taller figure had fully lost his temper. Raw waves of anger emanated from him as they saw him furiously grab his partner's shoulders and give them a good shake. "For the last time! Shut your face and move your ass!"

It was perhaps with that bickering that it came crashing down upon her, that she felt suddenly light-headed with the realization that should have dawned on her ages ago …

_It can't be … _

_… My God … _

_… They … they've returned … _

The furious interchanges became soundless, everything faded into a strange unnatural buzzing in her ears as she felt her knees finally give way, completely.

The yelling seemed to stop abruptly, and then a gasp, swift movements as if someone was running to her side.

**_Hero! _**

It was the final realization in her mind, the sudden movement, the final feeling of strong arms around her, catching her against his body as she collapsed against him.

The heartbeat thudding in her ears … the soft warmth of his embrace …

The hood thrown back, and the face, the beautiful, beautiful, half-remembered face gazing down upon hers.

And it was his eyes …

**_He's gotta be strong  
And he's gotta be fast  
And he's gotta be fresh from the fight! _**

… His eyes … the neverending, eternal promise of the return of a bright, blue summer's day reflected in those endless blue depths …

… Always returning …

**_I need a hero! _**

* * *

_Tired … _

_Just so bloody tired … _

She blinked, then hated herself.

_How could I be tired on a night as special as this … _

"Well."

Her mind automatically snapped to attention when she heard the voice.

The room seemed to be larger than usual, but that was perhaps because there were fewer people than usual. It seemed only the scattering of ANBU along with some Chuunin officers and the remaining medical shinobi were here.

Behind the desk, she sat, her elbows resting on the table, long, slender fingers linked together, upon which her chin rested. Her beautiful honey-brown eyes sparkled as ever, and perhaps tonight, they sparkled just that little bit more, as she studied the two dark, tall figures who stood before her.

They stood, their swords catching the glint of the soft lighting of the room. Dark clothes and cloaks to match the shadows, and their faces covered with black woollen face-masks, a loose balaclava-like black fabric, like the shinobi of old used to camouflage themselves.

_Well … considering who has been training them all this time … _

Their clothes were bulky, evidently layers of warm shirt and jacket on top of which they had donned long, flowing cloaks, the rest resembling standard issue ANBU uniforms.

He stood on the left, the only one who couldn't seem to stay still the moment they'd entered and been told to stand to attention in the centre of the room. Impatiently he'd shifted his tall, elegant form, now resting on one foot, now the other, hands excitedly and alternately clutching the hilt of his sword – the tip of which he was resting against the ground before him.

_Something no doubt which he will get told off for by … _

She was right, because the thought had just sat in her mind when his partner, who himself had stood gracefully and dignifiedly tall up to this point, suddenly turned his head with an impatient movement, and growling low, kicked the man on the left lightly, his irritated hiss carrying across only barely to the others in the room.

"Don't put the tip of your sword on the floor. Asshole. Weren't you told a million times never to do that?"

A soft little chuckle, a sound that caught the attention of the others who had only been half-paying attention. The other Jounin in the room raised their heads and curiously examined the two men who stood in the middle of the room.

"Ah, relax, the geezers aren't here right now. Will you stop being such a tight-ass. Look, do you remember half these people? Man, they haven't changed much –"

"Shut up, everyone's waiting for you to stop –"

" – although there's not as many here as I remember –"

"Did you hear what I said, idiot?!"

" – maybe it's because they're all out in fieldwork, wasn't it something like there's a shortage of –"

"Shut up! I don't want to be here all night –"

Danah gazed from the Hokage seated at her desk, a strange happiness sparkling in her eyes, to these two young men. All her body wanted was to drop and sink to the floor in fatigue, but something inside her was thudding, pounding, roaring as she looked upon the black figures, quietly watching their argumentative motions and hearing the hissed fighting. _It's just my exhaustion catching up to me, no doubt … _

Beside her, Hinata and Sakura, both still masked, were likewise staring at the two figures, who seemed oblivious to the three of them, or indeed anyone else in the room. The furious hisses from the slightly taller figure had gotten more annoyed, the only thing that disrupted his outward facade of calm dignity. Tsunade clasped her hands tightly and set them on the table firmly.

"That's enough."

Like a tap being turned off, the bickering stopped immediately, though Danah suspected if she could see underneath their masks, she would see a mischievous grin …

"I am sure you know it's rude to speak to your Hokage in face-masks." She made a dismissive gesture with her hand, smirking. "Remove them."

Swords were sheathed, then calloused, powerful hands reached up, and gripping the top of their head-coverings, they tugged it off.

There might have been only a few people in the room, but the gasp that swept through them maybe have made up for the lack of more …

_Three years … what three years could do to a boy … _

When she had last let them go, she had said goodbye to mere children … two boys who had become men far before their time, eyes that had seen and hearts that had felt too much to be comfortable in their thirteen-year-old bodies. Eyes that were old, far too old …

And now … now the two young men who stood before her had finally grown up to match those eyes …

And that's not all …

As she looked upon them, even the years that had built up around her own hardened heart and frozen features melted away. It was impossible not to be melted away by their smiles.

Well, Naruto's smile had always been something that had delighted her, indeed, delighted anyone else who had taken the time to talk to him enough to get a smile from him. But this one, from this boy who had grown too quickly into a man, was suddenly cheeky, mischievous, charming, and utterly, utterly beautiful, having put all the sunlight he had within him into it.

The sons of Uchiha had always been blessed with a mysterious dark beauty, and in his time away, something had happened which had immortalised that beauty. Sasuke had attained a grace and defined elegance to his features, a stunning beauty with underlying currents of raw strength and power rippling under the surface. Indeed, if Naruto's sunshine in his eyes and hair were the sun and the sky, then Sasuke's pale radiance was the dark beauty of the midnight sky and the silvery moon.

They hadn't really changed. They had simply grown into their good looks, aided by the fact that they had already found something needed to help fill in the empty spaces inside. Since the day the eyes of heaven had given them something to fill in those gaping holes that had once contained family, those lonely dark places had been filled in with light, and the rest just needed time to fit together.

And the faces which gave these visions … three years away from here, three years. Delicate and beautifully chiselled features, as if something other than a God's hand had shaped those lines and contours on their faces, hard and at the same time, something soft and elegant.

The two beside her had gasped when the boys' masks had slipped off, and Danah didn't need to see anyone else's expressions to know they were openly admiring the two visions in the centre of the room. Only Tsunade seemed to be the only one who had remained smiling throughout the whole thing …

Something nagged at the back of Danah's mind. _Tsunade-sama? As if … she already knew …?_

This thought was quenched immediately as Tsunade chuckled.

"Well. Looks like you came across my remaining three precious medical officers in the nick of time, bratlings."

Sasuke smirked, and with a quick bow, he glanced across at his partner, who stood straight and tall beside him, grinning widely and hugely.

"Speak for this idiot only here, Hokage-sama. We would have been earlier to escort them personally back here if he hadn't held us up."

Naruto's beautiful smile vanished instantly and replaced with a sulky scowl. "You bastard! You were the one who insisted that we dodge into that other place to investigate that weird thing that was going on there! You should have known I'd be more anxious to get to my sister as soon as I could!"

Sasuke's tiny hint of a smile hadn't left his face the entire time, and he smirked again. "Dobe, if you'd bothered to listen to Jiraiya-sensei earlier that evening, he'd discussed the incident at that very same tavern, and that shinobi from our allies the Hidden Sand would be investigating already. I agreed only because you seemed to have a fixation on it. And because you were being a royal pain in the ass about it."

Naruto's mouth was already wide open in anticipation of more argument before Tsunade, who'd been listening with half enjoyment and half irritation to something that hadn't been heard around Hidden Leaf for a long time, decided to stop them.

"Well, though I applaud your swiftness with which you dispatched that enemy, I must say … your exhibitionist tendencies haven't diminished, I see, Sasuke."

Naruto snorted and chuckled, and Sasuke's smug little smirk turned into a slight annoyed frown. Still delightedly grinning, Naruto suddenly reached up and playfully burying his hand in Sasuke's hair, pushed his head down, momentarily throwing the taller boy off balance.

"That's right, you got to get used to his causing a mess wherever he goes." Naruto gave an overdramatic sigh and ducked out of the way as Sasuke lurched away from him, highly annoyed by now and took a half-hearted swipe at his head. "Man, the number of times other people have to tidy up behind his sorry backside –"

They all couldn't help smirking again as they saw Sasuke's lips torn between a smile, a sneer, a scowl. Quick as lightning, making his own fist, he let Naruto have it on the top of his head, burying his fist in the silky golden sunshine. "You'll get yours."

"What the –! What was that for?!"

"For being a useless layabout who always is pulling me back and getting us into trouble. Don't forget it's not the first time you ran headfirst into a –"

"You're so full of it! What kind of bastard are you anyways?! You –"

"Enough! Give me your mission scroll!"

Without even losing any steam and ranting at Sasuke, Naruto reached down to his ankle, slipped a rolled up scroll from the folds of his clothes, and without looking sent it hurtling across to Kotetsu, who was standing by Tsunade's desk.

Blinking, Tsunade accepted the scroll and stared at the two in front of her as she unrolled the scroll, glanced briefly at its contents and handed it with a quick nod to Genma, who stamped it with an official seal, smoothed it out and laid it on a pile on the desk, lazily chewing on the thin wooden rod dangling from between his lips. Brown eyes calmly watched the two boys who had been absent for so long …

The bickering had now become one-sided, Sasuke having adopted the most bored expression, beautiful dark eyes lazily scanning the room, the floor, the high windows, the rafters, indeed paying close attention to everything except Naruto. This didn't take long to notice, and deep blue eyes narrowed in fury and Naruto was puffing out his chest to probably actually begin yelling before Tsunade spoke.

"Platoon Three. Your mission scroll please."

It was Hinata who, suddenly startled into attention, tore her gaze from the two in the centre of the room, and stepped forwards, the scroll already in her hand.

Naruto may have decided to dart in front of Sasuke and grab his shirt front to snarl in his face, but all thoughts of that soon rapidly disintegrated.

The girls had been standing towards the left of where the two centre of attention spectacles were, and Hinata had stepped out of the ranks and was walking towards the Hokage's desk. Knowing not to approach the Hokage with her ANBU mask on, the hand that wasn't holding the mission scroll rose and the edges of her fingers firmly held onto the sides of the mask. She pulled …

Long, flowing, liquid ebony. Perhaps it was the noiseless rustle of the midnight silk, the waves as it tumbled down from the tight twirls into which she had tied her hair back. Perhaps he had seen it, from the corners of his eyes, the eagerness with which the ebony waves had tried to escape their confines.

Blue eyes could only widen when he saw her, her back now turned towards them as she silently handed the scroll to Genma and stepping back, dropped down to one knee in the respectful way, waiting for the Hokage to give her approval or reprimand.

Tsunade again glanced briefly trough the contents before nodding. Bowing her head briefly, Hinata rose, gracefully unfolding herself to her full height. She turned to walk back towards her team.

Long, even, measured strides, the movements of her body fluid and graceful. Whatever had happened these past three years, gone was the jerky motions, the nervousness, the darting silvery eyes, the anxious fluttering.

Tsunade's golden eyes however, had been narrowed, honey-brown slits watching the young woman in the shadows intently, a frown tilting her lips. Suddenly, she thrust the mission scroll firmly upon the table.

"Danah. Come to the front please."

Naruto's attention snapped back suddenly.

"Hey … she's not well, she –"

But Danah had already shaken off Sakura's fingers, brushing away Hinata's arm as the girls tried to help her stand.

Where Hinata's movements had been those of gracefully flowing silk, Danah's now resembled those of a lame bird … a limping, wounded swan, blood splattered across its would-have-been beautiful plumage, still trying to maintain a semblance of normality …

She didn't gracefully drop down lightly on one knee, because she suddenly felt her legs give way brutally underneath her. She only managed to control herself enough not to crumble in a heap. She lowered her head, her breaths struggling. Blinking hard, her eyes swam into and out of focus …

_What on earth … suddenly, my breathing is … what is …? _

Slight panic registered in Naruto's eyes as he stared at the crumpled figure on the floor. "What – what the heck are you doing?! Can't you see she's not well, what are you –?"

About to dart forwards, he suddenly felt an iron grip on his wrist. Turning back, he glared into dark emotionless eyes.

"What are you doing? Let me go!"

"She's not your sister."

Naruto's eyes widened, then narrowed furiously. "What are you saying!"

Sasuke was unperturbed. "We're in front of the Hokage. Here, you follow a different set of protocols. No brother or sister, or man or wife here. Let her and Hokage-sama interact like a leader and their subordinate. In other words, shut up for once."

Had Naruto been paying closer attention in between trying to wrestle free of Sasuke's grip and hiss at him, he would have noticed the flicker in the dark eyes, the slight frown marring the delicate features. The slight twitch of anxiety and worry …

A coldness had descended across Tsunade's face, a grey steely expression. Linking her fingers under her chin, she leaned forwards, a harsh, grating, furious level of voice that caused many in the room to glance uneasily at her.

"I want you to explain, firstly your absence of your ANBU mask. Why do you have cuts, as well as the enemy's own blood across your face?"

Danah's eyes lazily studied the grains of the timber flooring beneath her hand. Her pained arm was resting lightly across her updrawn knee, golden hair cascading carelessly over it. She closed her eyes, her breathing more and more strained …

Tsunade noticed the sulkiness, the despondence, the childishness and her temper flared. Her light fingers became a tight fist and she struggled to compose her voice.

"I'm under the impression this assembly is gathered purely for the purpose of interpreting and acting upon the mission scrolls my two teams returned to me today, not for witnessing a display of your childish and irresponsible –"

"I just wanted it to be over."

The silence in the room was …

"Explain yourself."

Even in that situation, Tsunade commended herself on her control of her voice. She had a terrible inkling of what thoughts were currently festering in the girl's stupid mind, but … to have it so blatantly expressed …

"I … I mean just what I said. Every mission has to have a sacrifice. In addition to that, I …" Her subconscious was warning her not to continue, that already her careless, thoughtless words and expression of her incompetence had already set off a very, very short fuse.

But the reckless, dull, creeping crawling cloud that had crept upon her so subtly, so very subtly across the years seemed to have found a resting place and taken hold. From the moment this mission had begun, she had seen only a grey dimness in her vision; something having broken and died inside her long ago, and only the festering soulless spirit living on …

"I couldn't take it any more. Something has been wanting to give for a while now and … I suppose it did, this night."

Silence. Deadly, stony silence.

Then …

"Have you gone completely and utterly … _INSANE_?!"

Tsunade had already risen swiftly, her fists clenched tightly and furiously. The shinobi in the room tensed. She had been bordering breaking point for a long time now, and indeed had already snapped several times. But always she managed to get back a cool head quickly. However, considering who it was this time, and in what context, they couldn't be sure what her reaction was going to be like.

"What good could possibly have come from you deciding to sacrifice yourself?! What were you _thinking_? Alright, alright, so you'd have sent your teammates ahead of you, but then what? Wasted, you're all completely _wasted_! Where were you planning on getting your strength from to bring down at least three platoons of your enemy?"

Perhaps later she could blame it on a sort of white fury, as well as horror that she would have lost this being, this young woman who was so important to her. Perhaps it was the secret part of her mind where she stored away her overactive imagination, which had gone into sudden overdrive, seeing blood, blood, blood … like so long ago …

"Do you imagine for a moment your girls would have got through that mess unscathed? No matter how highly you consider them, you all were severely drained of your chakra and energy. Stupid, irresponsible _dimwit!_ Had these two not arrived just in time, and had your idiotic notions come into effect, you'd only have sent these girls into their terrible deaths …"

And irritation had risen as well, because Danah, down on one knee in the traditional respectful stance like Hinata had done, her head bowed, long hair cascading over, shadowing her face. But even with that, there was a small tilt to her lips, a small bitter smirk, a form of a smile that they had seen more and more of in the past few years, and one that Tsunade had come to intensely hate. _That smile again … this girl … _

Whatever direction her continuing rant had been about to go in came to a freezing, shocking halt when Danah's body suddenly jerked forwards, her hand flew upwards to her mouth as she coughed, a slow, hacking, rough cough that suddenly chilled the listeners right to the bone marrow.

Then a series of slow, soft thuds as the deep, red viscous life force of her insides spilled out in front of her, unpleasant _plops_! as thick blood hit the floorboards.

But even before Tsunade, or any of her attendants could reach the young woman, indeed even before her own teammates could rise with shock and sprint towards the lone figure, she was already wrapped in his strong, powerful warm arms.

From somewhere he'd pulled a handkerchief, which he was now pressing to her lips. A soft, humourless chuckle as Naruto pulled her close to his body, as her head came to rest at the junction between his shoulder and neck.

"Looks like that swipe that asshole gave you must have had some serious shit in it, eh."

Smiling, soft, withered fingers pressed the white cloth to her lips, and tilting her head up slightly, met his blue gaze. The shock, concern … the love.

Muffled by the cloth, her lips managed to move. "There's something I didn't tell you before, my little one …"

_Little one … _

When Naruto heard those words, it was as if the years fell away from him, as well. The soft laughter became more real especially when he saw the blue sparkle return to her eyes as she laughed up at him, even through the paleness of her face, the strange quivering of her body, the unnaturally frightening hoarseness of her voice, perhaps as the poison was working its way around.

Chuckling, Naruto shifted his body and held her more supportively, more tightly.

"I didn't tell you before … but back in that forest … when you saved me and carried me, and held me … I felt the arms of someone I hadn't felt since I was six years old …"

Naruto suddenly became very still, and though the light in his eyes shone some more, it was with pooling of unshed tears as he realised what she was saying through her broken lips.

_Since she was … six? _

A soft, sweet smile tilted her lips as she smiled. As understanding came to his eyes, her smile grew wider.

"It's true. I thought … somehow I thought Daddy had come to save me …"

And through those tears, through the pain within her body, the smile in the eyes, the pure happiness, the joy was all that was necessary. Years and years fell away, and it was the same laughing eyes he had looked into, her own the same half-forgotten eyes of a beautiful young woman, reaching the prime of her life, a girl so much in love, and girl so much loved herself …

The sensations throughout his mind and body momentarily numbed him to the reality in his arms. It was only suddenly when he felt their Hokage's presence beside them that he realised, that he fully became aware of the blood …

Tsunade felt as if her own blood truly had frozen in her veins. _She's … she's so …_

_What kind of poison is this? What kind of poison that even the best Jounins in this room couldn't detect it, couldn't see just how much it was damaging her! And this stupid girl …! Just sitting there … _

By now Sakura and Hinata had reached them, Sakura hovering behind, their eyes wide and terrified.

"You two," Swiftly motioning her head to Hinata and Sakura. "Admit her to the hospital. This is all I need, one of my own medical shinobi put up in bed …"

Slowly rising, he supported her body against as he had done before, and finally they were both standing. Hunched over slightly, he noticed he had already caught up with their height difference, but she was still just that little bit taller … Grinning, he grinned hugely. "I'm taking her!"

"No you are _not_. The girls and my attendants are more than capable of seeing to her. Naruto!" Tsunade snapped, cutting sharply across as Naruto was opening his mouth to argue again. "I need you and Sasuke here for mission and administrative purposes. You just stay where you are."

Feeling Sasuke's restraining arm on his again, he saw Genma approach, looking bored as all hell. Naruto set his jaw, furious.

"Yeah, good job you showed seeing to her all right! None of you noticed she was so ill!"

Sasuke didn't bother stopping Naruto, as it was something obviously true. Tsunade bit back her fury as she saw two pairs of eyes, calm fury flickering within, one sky blue the other midnight.

Danah only managed a small, tight smile before tightly holding onto Hinata's hand. Hinata on one side, Genma on the other, they had just turned away when Naruto growled.

"Where's Kakashi-sensei, anyway? Shouldn't he be here by now?"

Her reaction was electric. A gasp, eyes wide, and she'd spun around, almost throwing Genma off balance.

Instantly, a mask slipped over two people in that room. One was Tsunade. The other was Sasuke.

His jaw tight, he turned and glared daggers at Naruto who suddenly blinked. Oops …

"Naruto …"

Naruto's eyes widened when he heard the rasping, wheezing voice, which only a few moments ago had been the soft, sweet one he remembered of his sister's voice …

Turning almost fearfully, he gazed back into his own identical blue eyes. Genma was watching her apprehensively, serene brown eyes studying her sluggish movements.

"Kakashi-sensei hasn't reported back here for almost a year, Naruto, I don't think we understand what you're talking about."

It was Raidou who had stepped forwards, his eyes fixed only on Naruto, avoiding everything and everyone else.

Whenever the topic of ANBU Captain Hatake Kakashi was brought up, the room was always a curious mix of various temperatures, depending on who it was on the receiving end – everything ranging from icy cold and chilly to burning rage and furiously hot with anger.

Naruto stared in shock back into Raidou's dark eyes and saw a message. _Shut up. You idiot. _

One look at Naruto, and Sasuke could tell from his rising anger that he was about to give his own rude message back, and verbally too, at that. Grabbing the back of Naruto's cloak, Sasuke smoothly raised his voice above Naruto's half chokes and squawks.

"Yeah. Sorry, you'll have to forgive him, he's got the worst short-term memory. And long-term one, I suppose – of course we were told about his special mission and the delays that would ensue …"

"No …"

Again, that terrible wheezing sound. And this time when his eyes locked with his sister's, he saw something he didn't recognise …

"Wait until I've left the room. Then you can all continue your perfectly rehearsed game of deception." The wheezes were now gradually getting more and more painful … "Whatever else you've thought of me, you've forgotten that I'm not a complete idiot. I'm not so stupid that I haven't noticed that you've been keeping something from me about him … as if … as if it isn't already so hard not having my brother by my side, you …"

_Tears, stupid horrible tears … I'm not supposed to have anything left to cry … didn't I cry this pain out a long time ago …? _

"You even took … _him_ … away …"

Whether anyone was paying any attention anymore to what she was saying was debatable.

Not when her body doubled over, and screams and gasps resounded throughout the room as everyone witnessed the revolting waterfall. The waterfall of copious amounts of thick, red, viscous blood gushing from her mouth before she collapsed.

* * *

Well, so much for my explosive beginning! Let's just say at this stage that Chapter 2 shouldn't be long in coming ... but I really really hope you at least sort of enjoyed my beginning to Part 2 ... it will be a LOT different to Part 1, and though I didn't put it in the summary, a lot more romance blossoming in here

**Next: Chapter 2 – Konoha's Blossoms **

PICTURES, you say? Well, they are COMING! I got my sister to draw me rough sketches of how I wanted outfits to look. And now I have engaged the services of a TOP ARTIST, a true MASTERPIECE GENIUS … I will unveil her rare-diamond-quality work when she is ready …


	2. Konoha's Blossoms

DISCLAIMER: 'Naruto' is not mine, that happy honour belongs to Kishimoto Masashi! All I own are the new characters and my continuing plot and storyline.

(presses hands together and bows repeatedly) I am very very sorry for the late chapter, but I have a lot of other things going on …

Geez, you guys have no faith in me! As IF I would kill off Kakashi, one of everyone's favourite characters, not to say a main one!

No, don't be silly … don't forget that underneath it all, I am a WAFF writer (**W**arm-**A**nd-**F**luffy-**F**eeling), so the more disturbingly dark it gets, I'll find the happy beauty to balance it out!

**Chapter 2: ****Konoha's Blossoms **

Spoilers: OK, how do I describe this? Yes, it is somewhere near Chapter '300'. Someone asked me do I intend to stick to the real storyline, and I would have eagerly answered 'YES!' but it is a bit difficult! As I was planning my story, some things fell marvellously into place – such as the three year absence, and the new character, Sai (although I hadn't quite intended someone like him, but hey, I'm not complaining! He's an awesomely interesting character!) but it is hard to integrate the real storyline (which is so mind-bendingly fantastic!)

However, I am going to try my hardest, but in the process will make a few changes, take a few liberties …

**THIS IS DEDICATED TO ALEX, who is being fantastic and doing the character pictures for me, but we have to give her time to finish them, ne?  
**

* * *

When his eyes flickered open and he saw a pristine white ceiling with golden rays streaming across it instead of a dark midnight sky with twinkling lights, he panicked.

Only momentarily.

Long, slender arms swept out from under his sheets, stretching languidly over his head, groaning slightly as some sore muscles cracked and released tension. Clean, soft white sheets slid smoothly across his bare chest, and he realised that sometime along the night he must have unconsciously shrugged off his pyjama shirt, relishing in the feel of not having to curl up against freezing cold temperatures.

Suddenly energetic, he sat up and gleefully flung his bedsheets aside, feet planted firmly and joyfully on the floor. Sweeping his pyjama shirt up from where it was half dangling on the bedpost, he slipped it on again, enormous bright blue eyes grinning as it looked around his old room again …

_Looks like practically nothing has changed! Someone's dusted it every day, but everything … everything is as I left it … _

Indeed, even random combs and other toilette articles he'd owned had been left as they were on the dressing table, although evidently the person who'd dusted it every morning had also arranged it neatly to one side instead of the haphazard frenzy he'd leave it. He was even startled to see his old sandals in the corner, and the built-in cupboard very slightly open, as if someone had hurriedly removed linen and sheets to make up the bed, which indeed that someone had the night before.

It was so quiet. Perhaps it had been the three years of training, but his body had gradually taken on the properties of an alarm clock, waking him up and exactly five every morning. Up in that ridiculously high mountain top where the dawn came slightly earlier than everywhere else, he'd flatly refused that first day to rise at four like their sensei did. No amount of threats, yells, screams or anything could shift that, though there had been other forced times.

Naruto found himself staring at the sight outside his enormous window. Green! There was green stuff … how long since he'd looked out his room window and seen _green_ stuff!

It was still too early to properly be stunning. Nature herself was just stirring to wake up. It would take a few hours before she was at her most beautiful, but even until then …

It was the sweet, beautiful fresh smells, and the gentle silence. It was literally seeing the way a dewdrop lingered on the edge of a tiny, perfect little leaf, glittering like a diamond as the sun's beams shone through it. It was …

Elbows resting on the windowsill, Naruto grinned widely again and filled his chest with that beautiful, raw air.

_It was Hidden Leaf … _

_This is the place that I grew up … this is the place that made me who I am … _

Naruto's body automatically tensed when he felt a small presence outside his bedroom door. His body half turned from where he'd been comfortably leaning on the ledge.

Slowly, softly the door opened timidly.

A small head peeked around it.

Naruto's eyes widened.

Enormous brown eyes peered at the empty bed, and a little crease furrowed his head. Then he saw Naruto at the window, and his entire face suddenly shone with pure happiness.

"Naruto onii-san!"

It hadn't been all that hard to recognise Kawanari, especially with that absolute adorable smile that was permanently sitting on his little face. Even from the little he remembered of the tiny child, he could remember first and foremost that he absolutely, positively _thrived_ on –

"Oof!"

The tiny missile had hurtled from the doorway and little arms had attached itself tightly, warmly and delightedly around Naruto's waist, beautiful brown eyes dancing as they looked up at him.

_Yep, Kawanari still knocks the breath out of you!_

The little boy raised his head and looked up wonderingly, delighted at the deep, crackling laughter of the young man. A large, slightly calloused and very strong hand descended gently on his head, and tenderly ruffled his glossy brown hair.

"Well, have you been looking after her?"

Stepping back, Kawanari beamed hugely up at Naruto, who gazed, amused, down at this tiny imp of a child, marvelling at the pure magic that still resided in this child's eyes, the raw happiness that seemed to emanate from him, the innocent vibrancy of his joy …

"Well … now that you and Sasuke nii-san are back, then maybe now she'll be fully happy!"

A slight frown suddenly broke into his smile. Scratching his head, he shuffled back to his bed and sat down, gazing intently at the small boy. Kawanari's own smile faltered slightly.

"Well … I don't know about that, Kawanari-kun … something has been happening while we've been away, I think …"

Naruto stared down at his clasped hands, his mind reeling back to the previous night in the council room, at the exchange of heated words just before Danah had fainted again. Just before they'd all become aware of the lethal poison that had been flooding her body, and the miraculously way it had unknowingly kept at bay, before it had consumed her.

He remembered later, when the girls and most of the other shinobi had all been sent away, when Tsunade had looked directly at them, when her quiet voice had sounded, in that enormous hall. Quiet, soft words that had spoken volumes of the pain Danah had been going through, quiet words that explained partly the bitterness that had overtaken a young woman's mind, the sense of betrayal that had found a part inside her and had festered …

Shock, fury, indignation had consumed him at first. To think of all people, the only person who was not informed of Captain Hatake Kakashi's movements was the only woman that he loved …

What it must have been like … to have no one left, all of a sudden. To have himself and Sasuke sent away, and be left by herself, with not even the only other person she loved to be there. For so long a time …

Then he gazed out at the window, and his vision cleared. For there, through the tinge in the window, the sky was a bright blue-green, and the soft white clouds that had gathered around the sun had a beautiful silvery light to them. And framing all this, the strong, sturdy and glossy dark brown wood of the window frame …

_So she must have found people … _

_One by one, she must have built up her love from having nothing … _

Sakura's blue-green eyes … Hinata's beautiful silvery-white ones … and the shiny dark brown orbs of Kawanari's dancing eyes …

A rustle of red and white robes, a tiny little hand alighting on top of his clasped ones. He glanced up …

And Naruto couldn't help that rare, beautiful smile touching his lips as he looked at the child in front of him. That wide-eyed innocence, the pure, chaste trust, adoration and love in those enormous eyes, the youthful bounce in his steps, the freshness of his excitement. This was what a child was …

Despite everything, despite what he'd seen the previous night, despite everyone's spiteful and nasty comments about her … for this deprived, abandoned, orphaned boy to have blossomed such as this … A boy whose childhood had been the very elements of nightmares – for him to be as fresh as a pretty little rose now …!

_She found her own garden … and tended her bright new flowers … _

"Naruto onii-san?"

Blinking slowly, bright blue eyes refocused on Kawanari, who was now standing before him, wonder in his eyes, his head tilted slightly to one side.

"Hmm?"

"Are you … you're sixteen right now, aren't you, onii-san?"

Naruto blinked, startled, then grinned quizzically at the boy. "That's right. What makes you say that?"

Kawanari's beaming smile almost split his face, delighted and triumphant. "Because I saw a picture of your father when he was sixteen. You look exactly the same."

With his small delighted child's laughter, he gazed at Naruto earnestly, his memory matching the face in front of him with that picture he'd seen in the Hokage's office; he'd seen the one hung up on the wall, along with the other former Guardians of Konoha, and he'd seen the one Tsunade had shown him from the files she kept in her drawer – a handsome sixteen year old, a small shy smile.

So caught up in matching the picture he'd seen with this living version, he failed to notice the emotions that had risen and raced across Naruto's face. The sudden brightening of the eyes, the faint rise-tinged blush across his high cheekbones.

Kawanari blinked when he heard the young man's soft, deep chuckle, and that gentle, powerful hand ruffling his hair again.

"You're … you're a great kid. I think you're exactly what she needed while we were all away. You really have been looking after her."

* * *

The morning wind brightly, joyfully reached him, ruffling his clothes, stroking his hair.

He raised his head from where he'd been resting his forehead on his knees and looked up, blinking against the cheerful sunshine.

_It feels like so long … so damn long since I've felt this sun on me … _

_And this breeze …_

It was only after he'd spent so many years in that mountain that he fully appreciated the beauty of Konoha's breeze. This legendary breeze … people from other villages had all, oddly, commented on it, commented on how sweet, how restful and calming it made one feel.

_And it's true … somehow, as I'm sitting up here, I feel like invisible fingers are pulling something sharp from my chest, and taking them away … _

Beautiful black eyes skimmed over the rooftops. The first few stirrings of life from the houses as windows were flung open, delightedly inviting the breeze inside. As doors flew open, and little children rushed outside excitedly, pulling schoolbags on shoulders, hurriedly strapping their sandals on tight, calling out to their mothers, taking off down the street. Store owners preparing for another day of trade, housewives already meeting up with each other on the tops of street corners, chattering happily.

_So normal … everyone's so normal, and so happy … _

_Here, there's no bigger purpose. Everyone is just content with peace and quiet, and with going on with their lives. They believe and trust in the shinobi of this village … _

_They live each day in the security, behind the shield that we provide … _

He could just imagine what would happen if all these people playing happy families could see into his mind. If they could see the painfully burnt images of his memories, if they could just see the shadow that was racing across the horizon, Konoha in its sights …

The playful wind had picked up a necklace of leaves, and it was happily twining it around and around its fingers, swirling it here and there. The leaves twittered around his feet, and he watched the delicate, pretty little things settle around him before laughing up at him cheekily and taking off again, racing down the road below.

The roof tiles had gradually assumed a comfortable warmth, as the sun's rays shone upon them. He leaned back, and sighed as he felt the warmth upon his back, and found himself gazing up into another glorious day.

Midnight eyes gazed up at the wide blue expanse of eternity above him. Eyes that had seen too much. Eyes that were weary …

His mind was reeling, spinning with the things that he had undergone the last few years. Heck, even the last few months alone had been shocking …

_If anyone knew … if anyone had any idea what was happening …what is going to happen … _

_If they had any notion of the pain and suffering that goes on behind the quiet walls of the shinobi offices … _

_THUD._

Sasuke's eyes slid open.

"AAAARGH!!"

He couldn't really put his finger on the exact split-second when he realised _who_ had screamed blue murder and _why_, but the instant his brain told him, his body had already slowed down from the defensive position it had been about to leap into; the adrenalin levels plummeted, the tension in his muscles relaxed instantly, and the wings on his feet folded back, realising they weren't needed. Only his fury and irritation skyrocketed.

_That idiot_ …

"N-Naruto onii-san?"

Sasuke blinked at the soft, sweet little voice, and with a jolt remembered little Kawanari.

"Stupid damned door! What the hell is with _that_?!"

"W-What do you mean, onii-san?"

"The thing is supposed to _slide _open! What's with this?!"

"Wah! Oh no! That – does that mean you walked into it, Naruto onii-san?"

"Damn right I did! Why doesn't it _slide_?!"

Sasuke sighed, feeling ashamed at Naruto's idiocy this early in the morning. Up here on the roof, he had heard the moron as clear as day; he could just imagine how much further his voice had reached.

The soft little voice seemed to be explaining something. Sasuke would have told him not to waste his breath but …

_Kawanari …_

It wasn't too hard to recall the little boy, the sheer beauty of his happiness, the soft loveliness of his childish delight; even the rays of sunshine he seemed to pour into everything he did – his very smile, the excitement with which he did his own little chores.

Painfully, Sasuke was reminded of another little similar boy, in another lifetime ago … an even smaller, dark-haired version of Kawanari. A little boy with a smile pasted almost permanently on his soft little face. A little boy who would make his mother's eyes shine when he arrived home from school, a little boy who would sit on the steps, or climb on the roof and wait for his brother to come, a little boy whose heart would leap with delight when he would spy the tall figure walking calmly, dignified down the street of their house, the afternoon sunlight dancing upon his long sleek black hair, caught up in a single black tress, soft silky strands framing his slightly bowed face …

Sasuke's eyes darkened. _That stupid memory … out of all memories, remembering HIM … _

But unbidden to his mind rose another little boy, sunshine living in his golden hair, the sky in his eyes … a smile filled with sadness, happiness, cheekiness … and pain …

A boy who had no one waiting for him when he went to his lonely, decrepit room. No one to look down and love him with their pride. No one to wait for …

But a boy whose smile was always, always there … A childish beauty, joy and pride in everything …

He'd been his best friend for years. And still, Sasuke felt he would never really understand the sunshine behind his smile –

"SAS-U-_KEEEEEEE_!"

When the hand closed around his ankle, his first impulse was to furiously kick out, which he did. But Naruto was gripping it so tightly that with the force of Sasuke's leg kicking out, he was able to haul himself more securely onto the edge of the gutter.

Sasuke furiously snarled as Naruto's head and shoulders appeared on the edge of the gutter, his one free hand attempting to hold himself up – the rest of him obviously hanging off the gutter.

"You stupid damned moron, what are you playing at?!"

Naruto was gasping for breath, his face red with the effort, but he managed to yell back. "Me?! You can talk, you bastard! What do _you_ think you're doing, creeping away like that?!"

"What the hell do you think you are, my guardian?"

"DAMN RIGHT!"

"You're as much use as a match in a hailstorm, Naruto!"

"Shut up! Get the hell down here, we're supposed to go training!"

Sasuke furiously kicked out again. "Let go of my leg, idiot."

"No, I won't! You know you're not supposed to go wandering off, stupid!"

"Get off me, I said! Why don't you go walk into some more doors, stupid!"

"What the –! Damn you! Only stupid people call other people stupid who call them stupid!"

Sasuke gaped. _Well, there's another thing I'll never get used to either. _

_Naruto's STUPIDITY! _

* * *

Midday.

"Bastard. What the hell's up his ass?"

Naruto furiously banged his way inside, almost slamming the door behind him before sighing and letting it click quietly, his anger dissipating as he realised how futile it was if he broke the door – over Sasuke of all people.

_That'd be a waste. If he wants to be an asshole, that's his problem … _

His anger melted away completely under the warm, soft spray of the shower, the gentle rivulets of water washing away the mud streaks and stains, soothing itself over his cuts and bruises and finally washing away his fury completely in is gentle flowing motion.

After all his blah-blahing that morning about fighting with the asshole in his own territory, he'd still ended up with half the training field on his clothes. For whatever reason, the sheer force of the training this morning had been worse than usual. Perhaps it had been the way he'd ribed his teammate up earlier that morning …

_Yeah well … he deserves to know … he can't just expect to walk over everyone …_

Naruto finished up his bandages, having been quietly wrapping it around his wrists and ankles. So absorbed in his thoughts, he only became aware of a second presence in the house …

Large blue eyes suddenly alert, but his mind curious, because he didn't register any sinister intent in that presence, he quietly grabbed his coat and padded to the door, and peered cautiously around it.

"Where on earth …? I was so sure I had put it in this cupboard …"

A slender dark-haired figure rose, her back towards him, one hand sliding closed the low kitchen cupboard in which she had been searching. A lithe, willowy arm reached up over her head, pulling on the higher storage cupboards.

A willowy, graceful figure, long white undershirt covering her long arms and a sleeveless black dress receding down to a slender waist, where long liquid silky black hair swayed to an invisible breeze. A waif-like form that was almost not even there, the beauty and smooth elegance of her movements …

The bedroom door suddenly creaked quietly as he swung it open, his eyes fixed on the figure. She quickly turned her head ever so slightly and just as quickly turned back to the cupboard, and the tone of her voice changed. She obviously had sensed someone there but hadn't seen who it was.

"Oh, Kawanari-chan, is that you? I've been wondering when you'd get back from the hospital. You really shouldn't have gone, I'm sure they understand that you have to look after onee-chan now anyway. Now listen, where on earth is that large baking tray?"

The sweetest, softest most musical sound he had heard … the only other similar voice he had heard to this was his sister's and that was a long time ago …

She evidently didn't sense his approach or his identity. Her voice flowed on like silk, a sweet gentleness to her laughter as she continued in those delightful tones.

"Oh, look I found it, right here in this upper cupboard. Now listen, little Ka-chan, Naruto-kun and Uchiha-san are training at this moment, I think we'd bette7r quickly prepare something for when they get back, since Danah-san isn't here. Then Sakura-san and I have to go to class with the doctor, so I'll drop you off with Danah-san, how about it …"

"Maybe how about we forget about Uchiha-san at the moment and just have that lunch together?"

Breathless.

The moment she'd heard his completely changed, deep cheerful voice, she'd felt something tingle and shoot around inside her. And the second moment she'd turned and stared at the young man behind her, even her capabilities for being able to hold something firmly in her hands failed her.

Thank goodness it had only been plastic plates, something in which she had been about to put in chopped vegetables into in order to mix them, but they clattered now to the kitchen floor, nonetheless.

"S-Sorry! Oh my – I'm so sorry, Hinata-chan!"

Having dropped down on her knees, she gathered up the plates with slim little hands that had already regained their control, and gazed upwards.

Against a tall, slender, beautifully made form of a man. Into the golden-tinged halo of his sunshine hair. Into a pair of enormous beautiful blue eyes.

A boy she hardly remembered, now a man she barely knew …

"I'm such a klutz … I shouldn't have startled you like that …"

And upon rising, she stared as one hand went behind his head, rubbing that golden mass sheepishly, a half-remembered child's grin splitting that unnaturally handsome face.

_Some things didn't change, after all …_

"Naruto-kun …"

Blinking, he stared at her, slowly lowering her hand.

The sunshine in her smile, the light in her crystal eyes … the waves of radiant beauty flowing from this beauty who now stood before, a butterfly emerged from its cocoon, a delicate little bud that had burst into bloom … a girl now become a woman …

"It's good to see you, Naruto-kun. I feel … really happy that you're back."

And now, the musical waves of her voice. The lilting melody … and now long gone were the insecurities, the fearful uncertain whispers.

Well … not that Naruto had ever really noticed all this to start with.

"Since you're here, Naruto-kun …"

He stared at the small, slim, strong little hand as it motioned to the large baking tray on the bench. He stared back up at her, at the beaming sunshine in her smile.

"You can tell me directly what you'd like me to prepare for you, if you like."

"Hinata-chan …"

The smile slowly faded from her lips as she heard the lowered voice, the deeper tone of his voice. Gazing into enormous blue summer skies, she saw a gravity within them.

"Y-Yes, Naruto-kun?"

He'd been resting his arms on the bench-top, the weight of his upper body being held up through his elbows, fingers linked together and his head tilted slightly to one side, gazing at her. The little whisper of golden-tinged skin was visible at his neckline, straight, strong lines of finely toned muscle and well-conditioned skin shone, all contained by his standard-issue netted black top, on top of which was a normal white shirt. The young boy's body had given way to that of a young man, just gradually, gracefully but still awkwardly growing into his looks. Tall, slim and handsome …

And now, something inexplicable in his eyes …

"You've … you've changed a lot."

She blinked. What it was she had been expecting, it certainly wasn't that …

Quietly, she lowered her eyes, breaking that intent gaze. She placed the dishes she had been clasping on the benchtop. Resting small, agile hands on top of them, she spoke into a deep silence.

"That's … that's a good thing, isn't it Naruto-kun?"

They both watched, riveted, as she traced around the rim of the top dish with her forefinger.

Slowly, a crease formed in his smooth forehead.

"I don't know."

Her head lowered. Long, glossy black hair fell over her shoulder, waving to an invisible breeze. Her fingers slightly tense, she seemed to summon up her courage … and looked up at him, directly.

Feeling her eyes upon him, he too raised his eyes.

"I mean … I know I liked the old Hinata-chan … the one that I remembered. But you've changed a lot … you've …" He paused. He stared at this young woman before him, the confidence of her height, the slim frame. Something in her eyes … "You've become very different …"

She stared down at Naruto, his elbow balancing on the hard marble bench, his chin resting in his cupped hands. And a beautiful, beaming smile.

"Well, for starters, I'm trying to say that you've become very beautiful, Hinata-chan."

This time, it was a deeper silence that slowly draped itself in the kitchen.

It was only when the distant sounds of the Academy school bell was heard, signalling lunch-time, even penetrating this far into the village that Naruto suddenly blinked, and rose to his full height.

"But … a lot of other things have also changed … I feel like …"

Turning, he seemed to be looking around for something, and finally his hands fell upon his long coat, that he had draped over the sofa chair.

"What I've been trying to say is … I mean – I just feel like I have to get to know you again …"

She held her hands up against her body, the slightly trembling fingers of one hand gripping the wrist of the other, large silvery-white eyes never leaving those of the young man, watching as he slipped on his coat, the strange style and sophistication that seemed to have come with his taller stature and maturity.

"Ehh …"

A tightness in her throat caught fast as she looked up, gazing at his silhouette. Her gaze fell down to her clasped hands. _Why … why do I feel so … _

_… like a failure …? _

_… _

_… His words … it's as if he's … disappointed … _

_Oh …_

"Girls are so pretty. But boy, are they hard to talk to. I can never say anything properly."

She froze. Slowly, she looked up again, only to meet his eyes, one hand sheepishly rubbing the back of his head again, the other resting on his slim waist.

"I never meant anything bad, Hinata. All I meant to say is …" Taking a deep breath, he suddenly chuckled, a soft, deep chuckle that startled her at first, and then sent an unnatural warmth jolting through her …

"You probably are thinking the same about me now … I mean, I used to be only about as big as Kawanari when I left."

Releasing a deep breath, Hinata felt some of the tight ropes around her chest loosen …

"All I'm saying is … everything has changed now. Only a few years might have passed but – a lifetime of changes seems to have happened here."

Suddenly turning fully towards her, both hands resting on his waist now. And beaming again, his head to one side.

"So it's okay to start again, isn't it? It's okay to start building up something new from broken pieces of something old, isn't it?"

A gasp died within her throat, and indeed, like he himself had said, she did now see him differently … _to think … to think this was the same little boy whom I … _

_Whom I … _

_… _

_And now … _

"That's what it is all about, isn't it? When you start building up a lifetime of something from nothing … taking it step by step …"

A cheeky, beaming grin, and both hands resting behind his head. And there, at the instant, just for a moment, the years and beauty and maturity fell away …

… And there stood before her, silhouetted by the golden morning sunshine of Konoha streaming in through the open front door, before her stood the little boy who had left three years ago.

And she blinked … and now he had become a man …

She watched, strangely breathless now as he stepped over towards the armchair and leaning over, picked up his forehead protector.

"At the farm … the little farm at the base of that Mountain … I finally saw where onee-chan grew her roses. Those same pretty roses she used to send me, year after year."

Hinata blinked, confusion momentarily clouding her mind. _Roses? Year after … year? _

"The other girls tending them … I only understood then and there how difficult it is to raise a rose. The time it takes, the effort you have to put into it."

Hinata continued to watch, her lips slightly parted, at the thoughtful gaze settling in Naruto's eyes as he placed the _hitaite-ate_ against his forehead, then slid his long, dainty, calloused fingers around his head to tie up the long streaming band.

"But then one morning, you wake up, and … it has blossomed. Just like that. One day it's a little weak pretty bud, but the next –"

A small, soft smile lit up his face as his mind lingered somewhere else. He pulled the long blue bands tightly and catching her eye again, grinned widely.

"It looks like magic, except you know the work that went towards it. The love and care. But it still looks like magic. I suppose it still is."

Hinata could only watch him in wonder as he adjusted his coat, pulled at his shirt and tugged his hair.

And as he turned away from her, some more wondrous magic escaped his lips, to add to the already small precious collection of memories that had only just started …

"But you know another thing, Hinata-chan … just because a flower bud bursts into bloom, it is still the same little thing as it was when it was first noticed and admired. It's just blossomed, that's all."

And now, as she watched him walk away, a cold ache in her heart that she hadn't even been aware of melted away. A coldness that had been unknowingly built up for a number of years now was disappearing …

Naruto padded to the door and slipped his feet into his sandals, hopping on one foot as he lost his balance to pull the strap more tightly. Straightening up, he raised one hand to his forehead protector and gave her his old beaming, cheeky grin.

And perhaps he was too far away to see the precious crystal gems linger on the edge of her silver eyes; but it didn't matter anyway. Her tears were those of joy …

_He hasn't changed … despite everything he said … he really hasn't changed. He is still that same, rare, precious person I loved … _

_… That I believe … _

_… I still do … love … _

"Oh, and Hinata-chan?"

Blinking furiously, she dispelled her tears immediately and looked up.

"Don't worry about fixing lunch, if it's just for me and Sasuke. We're not really hungry anyway. I think … I think we'll skip lunch today and just go see onee-chan."

And now she smiled. Finally every single piece of the broken ache had gone away, blown away by that fresh morning Konoha breeze, leaving only an emptiness – an emptiness that could only be filled with beautiful things from now on.

"Oh, N-Naruto-kun?"

About to step out, he paused and turned.

Stepping out from behind the bench, Hinata rested one hand on it and smiled fully, completely at him. "We haven't had time to grow flowers here lately. Why don't you and Uchiha-san stop by Ino-san's flower shop on your way to the hospital?"

Naruto blinked then that beaming smile burst across his beautiful features again.

"Eh?! That's a great idea, Hinata-chan! I guess it'll give us a chance to see everyone else again too. See you later tonight Hinata!"

Suddenly excited, he waved joyfully to her and positively hurtled out of the doorway.

The black-haired beauty took a long, deep breath.

And the last dusty remnants of the ashes of her pain blew away completely …

* * *

The pencil scratched against the paper, the clipboard quivering slightly under the force the sharp tip exerted on it. Though her hand was still quivering slightly, she forced herself to ignore it, and to concentrate only on writing. It helped, a bit.

Upon feeling the intensity of his gaze upon her, she only tightened the grip.

"Please stop staring at me. It makes me feel uncomfortable."

She didn't look up at him, but could imagine him tilting his head very slightly to one side. "But they told me to watch you."

Her jaw tightened and a bitter snort escaped from her lips. "They don't mean it literally. They mean … just to keep an eye on someone, not stare at them continuously."

This time, she raised her eyes and gazed at him, his slight figure seated upon the chair by her bedside, the ebony black of his hair glossy in the stark and unpleasantly bright hospital lights. She watched him smile. A cold, emotionless smile on a handsome face.

"But if I do not keep an eye on you continuously, then I am not watching you."

This time, the tip of the pencil broke as her quivering hands pressed it to the paper. A long, sickeningly breathless sigh escaped her, a hollow, hoarse sound that would have gone right into the soul of anyone else.

"Oh, Kami-sama … how did it come to this …? How did it come …"

He only watched, mildly interested, as the tears at first trickled, then streamed down her face. He sat quietly through her sobs, through her whispered, painful cries, the heavings of her body as the pain and torture within flowed out through the salt of her tears – even as the poison circulating around her at that moment itself dislodged and was expelled with her tears.

When they subsided, and he spoke into that dead silence, she actually jumped violently, even though his voice was low and monotonous, as it always was.

"Danah-san, have you ceased being childish now?"

As they always had before, Sai's calm, brutally blunt and straightforwardness always brought her crashing back to earth and reality, wherever she might have been previously. And this instance was no different.

Tears were forgotten in an instant as she blinked in bleary-eyed shock, then found herself refocusing her misty gaze upon the handsome dark-haired boy seated beside her bed, intelligent, intimidating dark eyes watching her, mildly interested and curious.

"Uh … um –"

Under his scrutiny, she managed no more than a feeble attempt to wipe the signs of her pain, furiously drawing the sleeve of her hospital gown across her face, forcing the dryness and evaporation of her tears, and managing nothing louder than a hoarse, "I guess so."

And she just sat and watched numbly as a large, wide and frighteningly empty smile stretched across his face. "Oh, that's good."

Her eyes suddenly felt heavy, and as she pulled the sleeve of her gown across her eyes again, she heard his soft voice.

"Danah-san, may I ask something?"

His quiet, matter-of-fact voice always had a strange calming sensation on her fried nerves – however tactless they were, which was frequent. It was strange how she would sometimes seek out this boy's company, after a particularly hard day … behind his brilliance as a young man, there existed a ghost, a mere shadow of a child. A child who was always asking the strangest questions …

"Why do people cry?"

She stared, numbed, shocked. _What the … how do I answer something like that?! _

"I have seen them. When they are in pain, crying is the first thing they do. What does it achieve, Danah-san?"

She gaped at him, her mind reeling. She gazed at his clear, blank dark eyes, his pale, handsome face. There was no brimming of eagerness or earnestness. It was just mild curiosity.

"Crying … all forms of tears are the body's response to pain, Sai …"

He smiled again. "I fail to make my question clearer. When there is no physical pain, Danah-san. I meant at that time – why do people cry if someone dies, if they lose something, if they don't get what they want … the process of their tears does not attain it for them. So why waste time crying when there is no obvious wound?"

She felt her own eyes go blank as she gazed at the boy, felt his voice resounding in the hollowness of her own heart. "You just said it, Sai. When people cry and there is no obvious wound, there must be a wound inside them."

He tilted his head, gazing intently at her. "So crying heals the wound inside?"

The smile on her lips was a bitter one. "It doesn't directly heal it, really, does it? Just the way crying when you have a visible wound doesn't directly heal the wound, the same way … it's like the body's way of releasing the pain in an effort to heal. But somehow … it doesn't always work …"

"So … what happens if it doesn't work? The person cries themselves dry?"

Danah's eyes refocused on the young man. This conversation, if anyone else were to hear it, would horrify them. But here … it was so perfectly normal.

"Something like that. And several things can happen. The person who cries themselves out completely can either die of a broken heart, or they can tear out their heart and move on with life."

Silence. Pure, dead silence.

"And there is another thing you can do … wait for the spring to come back again, because it is similar to the sakura blossoms blooming on the bare trees once again … And remember that when winter melts, it doesn't become water …"

"Oh? What does it become?"

She gazed at him, and a sad little smile tilted her lips. "It becomes spring …"

…

She felt as if the stones were piling up inside her heart. Though it felt so empty, it was filled with a terrible heaviness … _so easy … it is so easy to say lovely things with one's lips and feel pain inside … _

"So … why do people cry when they are killing someone?"

Her mind crashed back to earth with a sickening thud. She stared, aghast. "Wh-What did you say?"

Sai's large dark eyes just gazed back blankly, intently. "Just what I said. Some people, I have seen them cry, I have seen something like pain cross their faces when they kill someone. Why?"

This time, it was too much. As she stared in horror at him, she couldn't erase the image from her mind … she couldn't stop the memory of _him_ …

And her voice, when it came out, was hoarse, grating, dying. "Perhaps … because … it causes a wound inside them as well. The act of taking a life –"

"But we are shinobi. Part of our existence in these villages, our missions as the defence of a village is to kill."

At this, Danah slowly shook her head. "Perhaps. But there is a simple answer for that. Because shinobi are still human. Whatever anyone thinks, they are not tools, but flesh and blood. Because everyone, even the worst, most vicious killer, is still capable of possessing the power to feel. And anyway," Here, she met his eyes, and another smile crossed her lips, though not so bitter. "It is not really weapons that kill people, is it Sai?"

He gazed at her. Waiting for her to continue.

"Because if it was weapons that kill people, we can all blame our bad spelling on our pencils."

Sai's eyes flickered.

"So people cry when they're killing because they feel pain inside."

Danah watched him, watched the intelligent dark eyes as they thoughtfully gazed at her.

"But when people feel pain inside, they usually show it on their faces too."

Danah's brows creased. _What on earth is he getting at? _

"Perhaps … those people … that's why they wear masks."

It was as if her limbs had stopped functioning. She felt even her heart would slide into a stillness.

"Do you think it's true, Danah-san? Do you think that's why some shinobi wear masks? So that they can carry on with their job of killing the enemy without having to show something weak like showing their inner pain?"

The silence was ringing in her mind. A painful throbbing in her chest.

"Is that why your Kakashi-sensei wears a mask?"

As the emptiness within her spread, the loneliness inside her became heavier … and the tears silently started coursing down her face. Tears that she did not know where they could have come from …

She numbly watched as he rose quietly, then approaching her bedside table, poured out a glass of water from the tall jug that had been placed there by a thoughtful Sakura.

"I have read that when people are sick in bed you have to sit next to them and pour them water Actually, it was to bring them hot tea, but I cannot do that right now, I think it is just the liquid part that I have to do. This is what I have read."

She stared at the glass held out to her, at the slim, strong, pale hand curled around it, the crystal water cheerfully swirling and settling inside. _He's … _read_ about it? _

"Thank you, Sai."

That smile again. He now quietly watched as she leaned back against her pillow, body curled up, knees drawn to her chest and withered fingers clasped tightly around her glass. Withered fingers that still trembled, no doubt as the poison pulsed its last few around her body.

"So, I hear your brother is back. About time."

It was always like this with Sai – they would jump and leap from topic to topic, from the most painful to the most ridiculous …

It was as if she was only remembering a half-forgotten dream, a softness of her memories that she had been tenderly wrapped in at some point in the past, only to be rudely awakened and interrupted, the dream lost and gone. But now, from the young man's simple words …

_Brother … _

_My … _

_… _

_He's back … _

_They both are … _

_And I'm …_

It was with mild amusement again that he watched the emotions flit across her face, the numbness, the nervousness, to anxiety and frustration, to the sudden widening of the beautiful blue eyes, the rose-tinged flush on her face which seemed so unusual from having been long-absent, the sudden excitement spreading over her, and finally the glass put aside, her frenzied attempts to gather up the multitude of sheets and forms from her bed and a hurried untidy pile upon the bedside table.

It was in the middle of her frenzy she realized something strange in what Sai had said. Something very strange that sounded almost as if …

She felt a weakness slip over her again, the weakness which always flooded whenever she moved too fast, and sinking back down gingerly at the edge of the bed, she gazed intently at him. "Sai? What did you mean by, 'about time'?"

His strangely beautiful dark eyes blinked slowly across at her. "Well, it's been a long time since I've seen him. From what I gather from my reading, he's the only one of your blood left, and he has left his sister all alone. The book which I was reading from said things like that would not be pleasant, and I was compelled to agree. So it is about time he returned." His head tilted slightly to one side, he blinked at her again.

Danah felt something very thick, very cold sliding around inside her. Her limbs were frozen and stiff, but her mind was racing.

_What … Sai was only assigned here a short while ago … barely months. One of ROOTS divisions' best … assigned to be with Sakura … _

_And I have not seen Naruto in almost three years … _

_So … how has Sai already come across him? How come Sai has come across him, and I … _

"Sai … where have you – where have you seen my brother?"

Her voice had suddenly lost its strength, and was thin and wavering. But Sai's answer was prompt and clear. "In the desert. A few months ago when we were summoned by the Sand. The attendants and close advisors of the Kazekage, in fact."

This time, everything did seem to go black, but it was a sort of faint-hearted black, because her anger was too exhausted to make much of an effort.

_A mission … Tsunade ordered a mission … Naruto … Sakura … Sai … _

_Months ago … _

_Summoned by … the Sand … _

_Kazekage … I – I can't believe … _

"You should lie down."

As the strange sickly black mist faded into searing white them dull grey before her eyes, she felt herself being propelled in gentle but strong, lean arms, and turned to realize Sai had somehow materialized on the other side of the bed, where she was, and had just prevented her swaying body from crashing to the floor.

"Sai … Sai, what happened on this –"

"I am sorry, but details of all elements regarding and concerning a certified mission assigned by the Hokage are confidential to only those involved, and must not be told …"

His voice was monotonous, emotionless. It was a lesson he had been taught since infancy, rules that had been drilled into him, and he was merely reciting it to her.

"No, no, you just shut up and – you have to tell me, I can't believe –"

"I am sorry, but I have just informed you that details of all elements regarding and concerning a certified mission assigned by the –"

_I don't believe this. He's repeating! As if I'm an idiot, he's repeating word-for word – _

"Shut up! Stop it, Sai!"

She didn't recognize her own voice, the scream of fury that had torn from her throat. If it had been anyone else, they would have been shocked speechless at such a scream, at such a temper from her, but … but it was Sai.

He merely adjusted the starched white bedsheet cover over her, and stood gazing down at her, a tranquil expression on his fine features.

"You will be glad to have him back."

_That's it … that … is … it … _

_I give up … _

_I … can't … I just … can't anymore … _

It was a dull, barely human voice that whispered to the boy, requesting that 'could he please leave the room, because she wanted to change'. _I want to be alone … _

He didn't move. Instead, there was the slightest raising of his eyebrows, and yet another question.

"But Danah-san … in order to change, you must have a change of clothes."

Here, she froze again, and that unexplicable weariness swept slowly across her face. He watched her sink back lethargically further back against her pillows, her body slumped, withered fingers clasped together. With an enormous effort, she forced her lips to move.

"Well … that's – that's a good point. I'm – I'm not thinking straight." Slowly, she raised her head, and he noted with interest the lines around her eyes. "When Kawanari-chan comes, I'll tell him to go bring me some clothes."

She blinked, startled as Sai suddenly moved, the sudden scraping back of the stool impeding his path unnaturally loud and completely disruptive of the calm that had settled in the room. She stared at his beaming smile, as if a clever blind artist had drawn a smile line on the face of the portrait, a smile without any of the customary warmth, feeling, emotion it should have.

"No, I will tell him. I will drop in and tell him, it will save him a second trip."

Her brows furrowing slightly, she nodded once in gratitude. "That's … that's very kind of you … Th-Thank you …"

He'd bowed stiffly, then turned and was already walking towards the door. His voice carried across to her. "No, not really. I am not really being kind. I do not have that intention at all."

He reached the door, slid it open, stepped over and turned, beaming at her.

His wide, _empty_ smile.

"Not really. I just have a feeling you want to be alone. That you want to have a fit, or a tantrum or something, and I would rather not be around for it. I have read about how people want to be alone for things like that."

Her lips parted in surprised shock, uncertain how to take in what he was saying. Then resigning herself to the fact that it was no different to the behaviour she'd been accustomed to him for so long …

"But I myself will come and see you later. They will understand if I tell them I failed somewhat in my watching of you."

Stepping over, he seemed about to slide the door closed when he looked up, and that thoughtful expression was hovering around his eyes.

"Something has just occurred to me, Danah-san. I have noticed that despite all these years of the wounds inside, I see that you are still able to cry."

Blinking rapidly to clear her eyes, she focused it again on this amazing, strange young man, trying to understand …

"That means you are not going to die of a broken-heart, or tear it out of your body. Perhaps then, the third possibility is awakening."

A shudder in her chest as she forced in her breaths. "Third … possibility?"

"Spring is coming soon."

Numbly, she watched as he bowed his head again, smiling that emotionless, beautiful smile, and quietly sliding the door closed with a soft click.

* * *

The nails of his fingers were cutting painfully into his palms, his teeth clenched tightly. The vision before him was one that occurred in his nightmares.

The boy, his knees quivering, his eyes wide and horrified. The terror emanating from him. The pain in his features.

And the women …

Kami-sama, those _women_ …

"No … no … y-y-you've got to be kidding me … NO!"

Thank goodness he wasn't the one in that position … of course he pitied Kiba, but he didn't really feel like rushing in to his defence right now. After all, his eyes were following the deathly moves of the two _women_ in this room.

_Crap, now she's getting up … this is bad … _

Shikamaru had already edged to the doorway, and was wondering if he could possibly get it open enough to disappear through it. He had a feeling that if he stayed another minute longer, his teeth might actually break with the force with which he was clenching them. Just the sight of that _woman_ on her feet now had sent shivers through his spine. He'd learnt to put up with her over the years, but right now, she was mad. Really mad.

And the other one … _Kami-sama … what possessed you to create women like these?! _

His attention focused rapidly back on the terrifying picture in front of him.

"You can't make me … please! Have _MERCY_!"

At the boy's scream, Shikamaru's nerves almost gave way. He was tipped almost to the point where he was about to tear open the door and go howling off down the corridor.

He would have too, if it wasn't for the sudden clattering, and the door slid open with a cheerful crash, and an equally cheerful voice from the other side yelled out.

"_Morn_-ing! How goes it, you ugly old hag!"

A cheerful voice which was almost instantly drowned out by a more desperate, high-pitched shriek.

"SHE'S A VICIOUS, TWISTED, CONNIVING, HIDEOUS OLD _WITCH_! AND YOU'RE WILLINGLY SENDING ME TO _HER_!!"

Kiba's voice had cracked as he howled pitifully, and the screaming pitch to which it had risen also drove out the shock and delighted surprise Shikamaru had felt on seeing the person who was behind the door. The persons, rather.

The enormously bright smile on the loud blue-eyed one had frozen in greeting when he saw the curious state of things within the room, and Shikamaru found himself grinning at a grumpy-looking Uchiha Sasuke, who seemed to have dragged himself unwillingly behind his teammate. Sasuke nodded back curtly in greeting before peering over Naruto's shoulder.

Tsunade had momentarily flickered her gaze over to her new visitors, but Kiba and the tall woman towering over his crouched form paid no attention whatsoever. In fact, at this point, Kiba launched himself on her, and grabbed her around the knees, gazing up at her in desperation.

"Come on! You don't want to send me to that witch do you? I'm the only brother you've got! _ONEE-CHAAAAAN!" _

"I can't believe you're behaving like this! She's just an old woman!"

"Yeah, to _you_ she is! But you can't seem to see through her – you can't seem to see her real intentions! She'll get me alone and then – _ARGH!_"

"You won't be going alone, idiot! Your team will be coming with you!"

"But – but still!"

"And perhaps Kakashi-sensei's team, Hokage-sama says, if he gets back in time."

"EVIL!"

Inuzuka Hana stared down, helplessly. Little brothers – did they ever really grow up? Sighing, she rubbed the back of her head as she recalled Danah, earlier that week, when she'd visited her at home, complaining and grumbling about her brother's would-be reaction to what Hokage-sama had appointed for him …

_"Ah?! But Hana-san … you know that that's why us big sisters are born first – to protect those little ones that come after us!" _

Hana had just stared in shock and disgruntled irritation at the girl. How could she be so cheerful about it!

But Danah had turned, a little smile on her face. "_Isn't it true, Hana-san, that only you and you alone are allowed to bully your brother? It is said that elder siblings are the worst tormentors – but the fiercest protectors." _

That powerful feeling she'd experienced when Danah had said that resurged every time she looked at her brother, but irritation did as well. She couldn't understand why he was so terrified about this mission. If anything, it was a laughing matter, but somehow … Hana glanced up again as Tsunade cleared her throat, from where she was behind her desk.

"Hana. I understand you may be feeling some of that sisterly concern, but I have hope in my Jounin Captains that they know why their Hokage assigns certain people to certain missions. I also have faith in my Jounins that they will ensure their subordinates understand that the Hokage has her reasons for these decisions, even if she chooses not to disclose them."

At this, a grim expression settled on Hana's face.

"I understand, Hokage-sama. You never had to doubt me, I will make sure this pitiful excuse for a man does as he is told."

He stared up at her, his arms still locked around her knees, his eyes wide with horror. "How could you do this to me?! Your own _brother_?! What have I ever done to you?!"

Hana's teeth clenched. _Civility's slipping, little brother … one more, and I'm gonna have to snap, here in front of all these people – _

"W-Wait a minute … will Danah-san be coming along?"

Hana glared down at him. "What?"

"She was the only one who cared last time! She understood what that witchy old woman was trying to do!"

"Last time she came, she was ill later, don't you remember? Anyway, Danah's got her own problems to deal with right now, you slobbering creep! Grow up and be a man!"

"Wh-What's this about onee-chan being ill? About Kakashi-sensei coming back? What problems?! What are you guys _talking_ about?!"

The discussion had taken on a weird level for Sasuke and Naruto, but at the last revelation, Naruto couldn't keep still any longer. Tsunade, who'd been watching in silent irritation, shifted her gaze upwards at Naruto. Hana glanced over her shoulder and raised her eyebrows.

"N-Naruto? Naruto! And is that you, Uchiha?!"

As if everything was suddenly forgotten, Kiba had leapt to his feet, and was joyfully punching Naruto (hard) on his arm in joyful welcome.

Grinning at their antics, Shikamaru's dark brown eyes flickered over and found themselves locked with Sasuke's brooding midnight dark stare.

"So. What's all this with the mission that we're supposedly accompanying Inuzuka's team on?"

Shikamaru's grin froze. _Well … not only have they not been told … but Uchiha doesn't realize that he – _

"Enough. I have to talk to these two dumplings who've just arrived. Hana, take your baggage out – "

" – HUH? BAGGAGE?"

" – WHO ARE YOU CALLING A DUMPLING?!"

" – And I'll summon you and the other team captain later to discuss it."

Shikamaru's sigh of relief was actually something clearly audible, but just as he was about to turn and bolt to the corridor, Tsunade smirked.

"I don't recall dismissing my favourite Chuunin Captain, but I do so now upon the request that you take Uchiha Sasuke back to your office and tell him the situation as we discussed."

_Oh yeah, give ME the easy job … _

_Women … _

Sasuke frowned. "Why am I going back with Shikamaru? Didn't you summon both me and the dimwit there to come together this morning?"

"Yes, but it was for the express purpose of explaining things to you," Tsunade hastily jumped in before Naruto could turn and scream at Sasuke. "I have a few matters to discuss with each of you, alone, so I will summon you later. Everyone, dismissed."

Everyone watched as Hana sighed and grabbed her brother by the back of his short, dragging him towards the door. They didn't stop arguing until they were well off down the corridor, and only then because they were out of earshot.

"What's going on? What kind of mission is it that Kiba is so scared of going to?"

Tsunade grinned at Naruto's puzzled expression. "I suppose you'll all find out presently. I would like to see Naruto here for a moment. The two of you, please retire to Shikamaru's office."

Sasuke frowned, glancing across at Naruto, then bowed and turned abruptly, stepping out of the office. Shikamaru did the same, hurriedly sliding the door behind them with a crash.

"Well."

Naruto turned and Tsunade had the sudden impression that the sun had burst into her office, so powerful was the force and joy and brightness of Naruto's smile.

"Old hag, it's good to see you too!"

Tsunade's eyebrow twitched but she let it go. "It's been hard for all of us not having you around. I think it's been hardest on your sister."

Naruto's smile faded, and his hands, which had been linked behind his head, slowly lowered, hanging b his sides. "I … She looks like something terrible –"

"Yes, you can stop right there. She looks something terrible."

Naruto stared as Tsunade wearily lowered herself back into her chair. "Of course, there's no one to fully place the blame on, but I have been stopping her from doing certain things, and I have been withholding information and such. I'm sure most of the blame for her broken heart rests purely with me."

Naruto frowned and stepped forwards, stopping right in front of Tsunade's desk. "What happened last night? Why was there even a team of three, let alone all medical shinobi?"

Tsunade sighed again, her fingers pressing hard on her temples.

Naruto pressed on. "Well? How come –"

"Because there was no other choice! Now that you have returned to Konoha, you can start thinking along our terms. We're really suffering, our ranks are so depleted that I can't even begin to …" She shook her head. "I haven't seen some of my Jounins in nearly a year. They've been reporting back properly, and that's the only way I know they're alive."

Naruto stared at her, his mind racing. Then he leaned forwards, strong, calloused hands gripping the edge of the table, his voice lowered.

"She doesn't know about Kakashi-sensei, does she –"

Tsunade's reflexes were so fast, Naruto as in the middle of a blink when he felt her hands on his shoulders, pulling him nearer across her table. The frantic but desperation was clearly in her whisper, but so was her controlled strength. As always, she was calm and efficient in her thoughts and actions.

"Naruto, _no_ one knows, and it had better stay that way! As far as _you_ are concerned, you have been just over three years in the mountain with Raidon-sensei and Jiraiya, and apart from those brief few months that Kakashi came to help train you and Sasuke – apart from that time Naruto, as far as you're concerned you never saw him again!"

He stared into her golden honey-brown eyes, the way the lights glimmered in them. So beautiful, and yet, also so full of wisdom, and strength, and pain. The requirements needed to be the Guardian of Konoha …

Naruto nodded slowly, and she relaxed her grip. He straightened and pulled at his long jacket, straightening the collar back into place.

"I … understand. But – but he will be coming back – back soon, won't he? Tsunade, won't he?"

His voice was still low, but desperate. His intent blue gaze burned into her own eyes.

"I haven't been able to properly see her yet but last night … she's in pain, I can see she's suffering inside. And she didn't even have him here, the whole time we've been away. How …" His blue eyes darted around as he turned away, slowly pacing the room. "How did she cope, all this time?"

Tsunade sighed, slowly sitting back down in her chair. Linking her fingers together, she stared at the glossy sheen of her mahogany desk.

"I suppose … she's been through this before. The last time she left, she was a little girl, a baby. Children are more resilient than one may think … I guess she found a way to cope in the mountain, but now. Now is a different story …"

Leaning back and slowly turning in her chair, Tsunade gazed out of the window behind her. "Now, they were all grown up. They grew up, and they found something together. They found something beautiful, and precious. And suddenly, it was torn apart …"

Tsunade gazed over the rooftops of her village. Her eyes glazed as images and memories from her mind interposed themselves over her vision. Anxiety, worry, frustration … _Kami-sama … Help us get through this … _

"I guess …"

Tsunade slowly turned around. Naruto was standing very still, gazing over her into the same view.

"You plan your future by bringing people into your life. You know that they all can't survive what you're facing. But those who do, they'll be part of your life forever. No matter what, when you fall, they'll catch you; when you're hungry, they'll feed you; when you're hurting, they'll heal you. And you'll do all the same for them. And that's – that's your future …"

Tsunade glanced up at him. In the mid-morning light pouring into her office, the way the sun's rays adoringly touched his hair, his face, she could almost be taken back decades. She felt she was seeing a vision of the past, the vision of another young man standing before her, so long ago. A young man, so achingly, beautifully similar to this vision before her …

It wasn't just his voice, his height, his features. His wisdom. Everything about him reminded her so achingly of … She couldn't suppress a smile.

"You've been taught well. You're a boy any father would be proud of."

Naruto blinked, then shifted his gaze downwards, his eyes locking with hers. There was a tiny little smile hovering around her lips, a wistful expression on her beautiful features. Resting her cheek on her hand, she tilted her head and gazed at him.

"The expression in your face just now … you remind me first of Dan …"

Naruto's eyes widened in confusion. "D-Dan?"

Tsunade's honey-brown eyes had glazed. "You didn't know this but … Danah was, in a way named after him … named after the father that little Ayame never knew …"

Naruto's lips parted, utterly bewildered but not knowing what to ask first. But slowly, as her words sunk in, he found himself slowly saying one name. "Ayame …?"

Slowly, ever so slowly, Tsunade's eyes raised to his. "Ayame … my daughter."

Naruto gasped. Suddenly some part inside him felt weak. "D-Daughter? Then was she … was she my …"

Tsunade's smile glowed, and she dropped her hand from her face, sitting up a little straighter. "That's right. Your mother. My only baby …"

Naruto watched her slowly stand, and turn towards the window.

"Just … just the same way you never got to know your father, Naruto … so my little girl never got to know hers, either. And I was so young. I was so very young and …"

Tsunade's voice had been getting quieter and quieter. It was as if she herself was slipping into the past.

"… I was so young, and Dan and I were so much in love … we never expected fate could tear us apart like …"

Naruto heard a deep, long intake of breath, then silence. He could only barely begin to imagine the pain within her right now. He kept very still, trying to weigh the gravity of this situation. He'd never heard Tsunade talk of his mother, let alone of her own past … obviously, everything that was happening was so distressing, that –

"I could never have dreamed that Dan would leave me with such a precious gift from heaven, Naruto … when I held my little darling in my arms months down the track after I lost him – I just … I looked at her and knew I could never love anyone more …"

He felt something painful but at the same time delightful rising up and swelling within him … _Wow … this feeling is so strong, I can almost begin to feel the same way … _

"She was so beautiful. She was the most beautiful little thing … and she had Dan's eyes. That was – that was the most painful but the most beautiful part. And I watched her grow. She grew and fell in love …"

Tsunade turned around and he found he wasn't startled to see the tears in her eyes. The tears, and her beaming, bright and beautiful smile.

"And when she had her baby girl, she was determined to name her after the grandfather she would never know. She and her husband had decided; she would name their little girl, and he would name their little boy …"

His heart felt as if the little bird within was fluttering its wings madly, bursting with joy … _Danah … my beautiful onee-chan … and me … _

"And of course, Arashi named you. When they saw you, the moment you were born … you reached out and cheekily grabbed your mother's hair. So cheeky … and so very, very beautiful …"

Shock upon shock was piling on the young man, and he stared in delight and confusion at the beautiful woman in front of him. _This is … this is all wonderful, but – but why is she doing this? She's telling me all this as if … as if … _

"Arashi?"

This time, his voice could barely escape from his throat, so tight with emotion, with the strain of holding back tears.

"Hmm." This time, she turned fully, and gazed up at the vision before her. "That's why I made the little trip down my memories, Naruto. Watching you standing before me, hearing your soft, low voice speaking … I thought my past had suddenly become real again …"

Naruto stared at her soft smile, the glimmering in her eyes … _my father … she means my father … _

Tsunade suddenly chuckled. "Both yours and Danah's names – were sort of like private jokes, and at the same time, something very special."

"Wh-What?"

Tsunade grinned. "Danah's name sounds sort of foreign, but it is the girl's version of Dan's name. Ayame and Arashi knew it sounded strange, but that's what they wanted. And as for yours … yours was probably more special …"

Naruto's brow furrowed, confused. "What do you mean?"

"Well, that's something they both had in common, you know … how they both met, and what drew them towards each other."

Naruto was utterly bewildered now. "_Haaah??_ Make sense!"

Tsunade grins. "Ramen!"

Naruto's eyes bulged. _What the … _

Tsunade just grinned at him, but the pain behind her mask was very, very real … watching this beautiful golden-haired vision before her, as tall and proud as his father, as beautiful as his mother …

She was slipping … slipping, and falling, and swirling away …

_Take me back just under thirty-odd years … _

_… _

_"Weeelll-COME!" _

_Tsunade jerked awake immediately, raising her head from her uncomfortable position. Blinking stupidly at the dark grained wooden tabletop, at her arms cradled on it upon which her head had rested, she tried to focus her eyes directly ahead of her, and found herself staring at cheerful scribbles about pork, vegetable, seafood etc ramen, complete with extra miso soup is required, servings small, regular, large and – _

_"Please can I take your orders!" _

_The sweet, loud and cheerful voice rang through her head and she wearily found herself reaching for the tin of extra chopsticks, her long fingers curling around it in a strong grip to throw at the source of the voice. _

_"Ah, baa-chan, that's an exceptionally WONDERFUL choice of ramen, if I may say so today!" _

_Blinking again, Tsunade's eyes cleared more and she saw a girl swim clearer into her vision. From this distance, a tall, golden-haired bumbling mass of energy and vibrancy. _

_"Oh … d'you really think so, dear? Why is it wonderful?" _

_"Oh, because baa-chan, anyone ordering the regular pork ramen today gets a FREE topping of marinated boiled egg or if you prefer, a glass of sake instead!" _

_Tsunade slowly released her hold on the chopstick tin, and stared more clearly at the slender figure of a girl behind the counter, two long tresses of golden hair trailing down her shoulders, and enormously large, beautiful blue-green eyes. _

_Dan's eyes … _

_Tsunade watched as the strain and tiredness faded away from the old people's faces, as they allowed themselves to unwind and relax, and look forward to their meal. _

_The old man smiled upon the girl kindly. "Ah, you don't have to do that, sweetie –" _

_The girl flapped her hand at him, musical, cheerful laughter resounding. "I'm not doing anything, oji-san, only because it really and truly IS a free special today with the ramen!" Her smile was dazzling as she flourished her pen and scribbled madly on her order-pad. "And if it wasn't a special this morning, it is now that I've said it! Okay then, two regular pork and miso ramen coming up, and what special would you both like?" _

_Tsunade couldn't stop the grin spreading through her face. It always did when she saw Ayame working here … _

_"Mum. Hey, mum, are you all right?" _

_Blinking sleepily again, she stared up into Dan's beautiful blue-green eyes, and felt a stab in her heart – a stab of immense pain and incredible joy. _

_"I'm all right, my darling little bratling. Just get me a glass of –" _

_"Water, right? Yes, absolutely, coming right up." _

_The word 'sake' dying furiously on her lips, Tsunade tried to glare as Ayame winked at her with all the cheekiness she had, smiled brightly and disappeared behind the partition, calling out joyfully to the other girls and the chefs working behind there. _

_Downing a full glass of refreshing, ice-cold water, instead of feeling awake, Tsunade felt like nothing looked so comfortable as this table … _

_So tired … I'm so tired … I came to spend some time with Ayame here, and all I can do is catch up on sleep … _

_The hospital was shocking today, I just want to … to … to – sleep … _

_"What, you again?" _

_Grumbling again, Tsunade raised her head. Once again she found herself blinking at the light, but this time, at the lack of light. _

_Glancing over her shoulder, she was shocked to see the steady, cheerful evening sunset shimmering brightly across the rooftops of Konoha. _

_What the -! When did so much time pass?! _

_"What's that supposed to mean, 'you again'?" _

_Tsunade glanced across at the only other customer, way further down from where she'd been sitting – and sleeping – against the wall of the ramen stand. _

_A mass of slightly messy, slightly tidy golden hair, a harassed-looking young man wearing a Jounin jacket – and a frown as he stared up at the girl who, in return, was glaring down at him, one of Ayame's best scowls stretched perfectly across her face. _

_"It means exactly what I say! One of the girls told me about you." _

_Snorting, he looked away and picked up the glass of water she had thumped down in front of him and raised it to his lips. "What on earth." _

_"She did! They warned me about an annoying person who comes here at this time!" _

_Thirstily gulping down the cool water, he still managed to scowl at her, enormous blue eyes glaring up at her, and his smooth forehead furrowing thunderously. Ayame continued unperturbed. _

_"I'm not usually at the counter at this time, usually back with the chef, but I've heard you! When poor Minako tries to talk to you in her cheerful way, all you do is grumble!" _

_He seemed to decide to ignore her, or perhaps his thirst was too much, because he proceeded to drain the glass. _

_"Yeah! She said, 'look out for Mr Grumpy Bum'!" _

_Tsunade and Ayame both stared as he suddenly choked on the water, slamming it down with one hand, and slapping his other hand over his mouth, his face going bright red. Even in the midst of it all, as he worked himself up into a severe coughing fit, he glared up at her, trying to say something in retort, but unable to do so. _

_Ayame however, had changed completely. The instant he'd started choking, the scowl had vanished instantly. _

_"Oh my –! Oh Kami-sama! Are you all right?! Oh, help!" _

_Leaning over, she started thumping him across the back, as far back as she could reach, as she was leaning over the counter. By this time, both hands were clamped across his mouth and he was still red, but calming down somewhat. _

_Suddenly he stood up, scraping back his stool against the dust, and making furious motions at her with one hand, waving her away. Tsunade either had found it very amusing, or had been too late to warn him that his foot was well and firmly caught in the support bars of the stool … _

_Ayame screamed in panic as the young man suddenly found himself stumbling backwards wildly and crazily, arms flailing ridiculously. _

_Tsunade's attention, in her half-dazed state was by now riveted on the progress of the stool and the foot trapped in it. Any minute now, any minute … _

_Utterly and completely panicking now, Ayame lunged forwards, her own arms clawing and flailing as she reached for him. She managed to grab the lapels of his flak jacket and pulled forwards, hard. _

_The stool became painfully dislodged and went spinning backwards with a clatter, while the young man, his eyes wide and shocked, went hurtling uncontrollably forwards – his eyes suddenly locked with those of the young woman whose small fingers were tightly gripped his jacket. _

_Tsunade sighed as she heard the painful crack, as their heads collided. _

_"ARGH!" _

_"OW!" _

_Opening her eyes again, she found them both standing with their heads bowed, their fingers rubbing at their foreheads. This time, Ayame found she had to glare upwards, but not by much, because he was standing. The young man lowered his hands slowly to his waist, a thunderous scowl raging across his vivid blue eyes, an angry red lump blossoming happily in the middle of his brow. _

_Then suddenly, they laughed. _

_This time, Tsunade's eyes flew open and she stared in shock at Ayame, clutching her stomach and laughing joyfully, and the young man, his head thrown slightly back. _

_She couldn't have said later how long the laughter went for … it was quite a vision, watching the beautiful young woman so lively and bright, hearing the musical waves of her laughter … _

_"Oh! Oh, now my stomach and sides all hurt! I think you've earned a free miso ramen, and as an additional bonus to add to the red egg on your forehead, I'll give you a couple of narutos to make up for it, how about it?" _

_The young man stopped laughing and stared at her. Whether the sudden redness on his face was from the choking, or the laughter, or something else entirely, only an expert could really tell … _

_Tsunade's eyes widened slightly and a thoughtful gaze slid into her eyes as she watched Ayame suddenly efficient again, bustling around, replacing his water, bringing in the chopsticks and tissues and whatnots. _

_The young man remained very quiet, seemingly unable to take his eyes away from the girl behind the counter, so energetic and lively. Now and then, confusion would sweep across his brow, as if he himself could barely understand his own emotions. _

_Finally she triumphantly placed a regular-sized miso ramen in front of him, and then just as happily placed a smaller-bowl beside him. Tearing his eyes away somehow, he peered into the smaller one. Ayame laughed in delight and lightly touched the smaller bowl. _

_"Narutos! Aren't they beautiful! They're actually the first ones I made by myself, even Tsuyoshi-ojisan didn't have to help me!" _

_He just numbly watched as she delightedly placed the red and white skinned fish cakes neatly along the top of his miso ramen. _

_"Um …" _

_"Yes?" _

_He stared up at her questioning gaze, and suddenly blushed. "Well … I mean to say … why are you putting both red and white? Aren't these ones served at celebration-thingies –" _

_"Well, the white one is the usual colour, but the red is, like I said, for the red bump on your head." With a flourish, she arranged the last one and beamed down at him, a stunningly beautiful, dazzling smile. "But red and white narutos bring good luck too, you know." _

_He gaped up at her. Catching his gaze, she nodded importantly, and even when he blushed madly again, she seemed to mistake it for embarrassment. _

_"Oh yes. It's true, didn't you know? Eat up, and enjoy!" _

_She picked up the empty serving platter and hugged it to her chest, and broke easily into her beautiful smile again. _

_Slowly, ever so slowly, he smiled back. At this, Ayame's faded ever so slightly, and now – incredibly, and Tsunade was haven't to squint to make sure she wasn't seeing things – it was Ayame who was standing there, a soft, slow pink tinge spreading across her face as she saw his smile. _

_"Actually, it's called a kamaboko, not naruto. Outside of here, they even call it 'sushi'." _

_Grinning up at her cheekily, he held her gaze steady as he swept up ramen with his chopsticks and sat there, chomping away happily, still smiling up at her. _

_Tsunade watched as Ayame's fingers tightened on the platter, watched the rose-coloured blush make her blossom again, and heard the girl's reply in a voice that was so soft Tsunade had shift sideways slightly to hear it. _

_"I – I like calling it 'naruto' better. It's cute. And adorable. And beautiful and – and strong, like the tidal whirlpool it's named after …" _

_The young man paused in his chewing, and gazed up at her. At the way Ayame finally expelled her breath and managed another dazzling smile, her head on one side. Tsunade watched him swallow. _

_"Well, from now on, I think I also like 'naruto' better …" _

_There was only silence after that, with Ayame having lost her smile again, overcome by her soft blush, and the handsome young man eating with dignified relish and grinning up at her. _

_"I'm Arashi, by the way …" _

_"A … Ayame …" _

_Tsunade had quietly risen. None of them noticed, or turned towards her. A tiny smile hovering on her lips, she turned around and raised the awning cover and gazed outside, beyond the sudden magical world that had sprung into existence from nowhere in the cheery, cosy little ramen stand. _

_The sun was setting, sending the last few of its struggling rays out, saying goodnight to its favourite village. _

_The darkness was gathering now, but Tsunade knew, with one of her premonitions that always turned out to be right, that although this sun was setting now, just an arm's length away from her was the birth of something new … _

_And beautiful … and eternal … _

Something was hard and painful under her fingers. Something sharp was sticking …

Blinking, she was astonished to see a cheerful mid-morning sun instead of the soft sunset, and looking down, was even more surprised as she saw a wood-splinter in her forefinger. Obviously she must have been running her hand up and down the smooth window-ledge …

Looking at the grained wood of the window frame, she was reminded strongly of the grained wood of that ramen stand …

"So many years … they wanted to have so many years with their children …"

"H-Hey …"

Hearing the confused, low voice, she turned and almost felt her heart leaping to her throat. _What …? A-Arashi? So the sunset was – _

And then she blinked, and saw somebody else …

_"Oneeeeeeee-chan! Onee-chan! I really and truly am gonna work hard someday to be Konoha's Guardian! Just like Grandfather …"_

And she blinked, a third time and saw the young man who had chased away her ghosts.

"Naruto …"

Naruto blinked. His eyes were gazing at her, surprise, confusion, concern, all of it written across it. He began edging backwards, seemingly inconscpicuously.

_She's being weird, for some reason today … heck, more than one person around here is being weird … _

_I've gotta get out of here … _

"Um … if you've finished doing – whatever it is you're doing, I'd like to go see onee-chan now …"

Tsunade may have nodded numbly, but the next thing she knew, Naruto had disappeared; a final doubtful, worried glance at her over his shoulder, then the door slid quietly shut, and she heard his footsteps, lightly racing down the corridor.

* * *

"Onee-chan …"

She had sensed his approach, was already aware of his presence even before he slid open the door. At the soft clattering in the corridor, a small, pretty smile had tilted her lips. She pulled her long waistcoat over her kimono, tightened her sash and had just turned towards the soft voice.

And the door slid open with a quiet gentleness, and a beautiful head peeped around it …

When she turned and stretched out her arms, Naruto didn't hesitate. With a grin threatening to split his face, he was already bounding across the room. Although a part of him noticed the unsteadiness of her body, noticed the way she stumbled slightly as she turned, noticed the way the sunlight streaming in from the giant window behind her seemed to go through rather than around her … though he might have noticed the unnatural tenseness, the ageing of her face, her eyes …

His arms still fitted snugly around her. His head still fitted comfortably against the crook of her shoulder and neck. And her arms fitted him against her just as comfortably, just as they always had …

_Whatever happened … whatever it is … _

_This is still my onee-chan … she still belongs to me … _

"Well … you've certainly grown taller. Your hair doesn't tickle my chin anymore."

She smiled when she heard him chuckle. She didn't really notice the way his smile faded as he tightened his arms around her, and felt the thinness of her body … didn't notice the chill that swept across him, the shock in his eyes …

"But you still fit wonderfully against my neck now, like the little bunny you are, so that's all right."

And her voice … there was something strange there as well, but now, just for this moment … it was the same sweet, carefree voice he remembered …

…

_Carefree? _

_… _

_Yes … that's exactly how she used to be … _

_Before we left … there were still problems, still so many terrible things everywhere … but she was all right. She was … all right … _

_What … what on earth has been going on here?! _

"Let me look at you properly."

Naruto felt her gentle arms slowly slid to his shoulders, felt her step backwards and gaze intently at him. Catching her eyes, he beamed at her, all the sunshine of his delight put completely into his smile. Sliding her hands down his arms, she caught his own hands, clasping them both in both of hers. A strange expression crossed her face, and she glanced down, turning his hands palms upwards.

Naruto stared in confusion as she passed a trembling thin finger gently around his palm. He watched its progress, then glanced up.

"You can't even feel my finger, can you Naruto?"

"Wh-What?"

Danah's smile was heartbreaking. "You poor little hands … I should have remembered … I forgot how terrible the training would be …"

_They're so hard … so rough and calloused … _

_As if they've been burned and healed over and over again … _

_They're exactly like … _

_… His … _

She blinked when his hand suddenly twisted out of her grip, and alighted firmly on her shoulders, drawing closer to her. She stared at the bright vibrancy of his eyes, at the entire wide blue sky and all its sunny joys packed into this beautiful, beautiful child in front of her …

"Smooth and soft hands never did much good for any of us, onee-chan. A strong, healthy garden only comes from hard weeding, and your hands will change because of that, but the flowers are strong and beautiful, aren't they?"

She stared at him, stared at someone who wasn't the baby boy she had seen leave … she stared at this tall, handsome young man before her, this man with the sun in his hair and the sky in his eyes … the love in his heart and the world at his feet …

But that incredibly contagious wide, beaming grin hadn't changed. Not one bit. It was just as silly and charming and infectious and beautiful all at once.

And, just for a moment, the years fell off her face and her heart.

She laughed.

Naruto stared up at her, his mouth slightly open, watching as a healthy pink glow spread around her cheeks, as once lank and dull-looking hair sprang to life and splayed around her, and as her old woman's body rejuvenated right then and there.

Playfully, she grabbed one of his hands in each of hers and started swinging them back and forth.

_That's … THAT'S definitely my onee-chan … _

"So."

Naruto blinked and winced when he found her fingers cheekily pulling at his cheeks. Danah bent forwards, eye-level to his and frowned in mock seriousness.

"So, we'll just see how hard I have to work to iron out all of the bad habits you learnt while up at the Mountain." Lightly and tenderly bumping her forehead with his, she again grabbed his hands and stepped back, pleasure and delight dancing in her eyes and she watched him.

Naruto frowned, but his lips still twitched. Frowns had never settled easily on a mouth that readily smiled.

"What bad habits?!"

"Well, you know. All of you trapped up there in that Mountain all together, probably getting into arguments and fights every day, leaving a mess for poor Miya-chan and Naomi-chan to clean up …"

She couldn't stop the giggling, especially when she saw the scowl that settled across his face. That adorable pout – he really was still just a little baby!

"There're more girls than them now … and they didn't clean up after us, we –"

"Ohhhh, reeeallyy? _More_ girls than them now? Well, now, let's just see what happens when the poor Konoha ladies find out that two of their most eligible bachelors have been –"

"_Argh!_ Onee-chan! What are you _talking_ about?!"

In the middle of Naruto going bright red in his confusion, and Danah cheerfully swinging his arms around, and alternately pinching his nose, it wasn't a better time for visitors.

The door slid open, and instantly a tiny ball of energy bounded in, delight positively flooding his face when he saw the two figures in the room, both so changed, and yet … just now, a whisper of the old carefree joy, the heaven sparkling in their eyes. Just as if all the problems and everything now was forgotten, put aside, even if just for a moment …

"Danah nee-chan! Onii-san!"

They both turned and watched the little ball of energy hurtling towards them, each of his small but loving arms stretching upwards to grab each of their wrists. Enormous sparkling brown eyes danced up at them, and Kawanari's smile, as always, threatened to outshine the sunlight streaming in.

"This is quite a beautiful sight."

"Very true, Sakura-san. I have been waiting to see that kind of smile on her face for a long time."

Naruto turned and stared at the two beautiful girls who stood at the doorway. Sakura stood, one hand on her waist, the other resting on the door frame which she had just slid open. Behind her, a curtain of shimmering back hair as Hinata peeped around her, a soft smile hovering on her lips. Both girls were giggling.

"_DAAAANNAAAAH-SAAAAAAAN!_"

Everyone froze. Sakura and Hinata took one glance down the hallway, and instantly jumped out of the doorway.

The next thing, a hurricane had swept into the room and had hurled itself against Danah.

"_HEEEEEELLLPPPPPP MEEEEEEE!_"

Her arms flailing wildly, she struggled to keep her balance, staring down in shock at the bundle of clothes – seemingly – that had draped itself firmly around her legs.

Naruto, who'd instantly reached to grab Danah as she overbalanced, stared down in confusion at Kiba, who positively had tears streaming down his face, arms locked permanently around the startled Danah's knees. Bewildered, she clutched at Naruto.

"K-Kiba-kun … what on earth –"

"_KIBA_!! GET YOUR WORTHLESS ASS HERE BEFORE I TEAR YOUR LIVER OUT AND USE IT IN MY NEXT OPERATION!"

Another sound like rolling thunder, and Hana burst into the room, clutching the doorframe and gasping for breath. She caught sight of Kiba and her eyes narrowed.

"Idiot! Danah's not well, haven't you heard what happened yesterday?! Get away and stop –"

"Come on, Inuzuka, you have to stop this. It's ridiculous, it's embarrassing and incredibly childish."

Again, everyone looked up at the soft, stern, deep voice. Standing next to Sakura, with Hinata still peeking over her shoulder, stood a calm and indifferent Neji with his arms crossed over his chest, and a slightly annoyed-looking but still relatively calm Shino, hands in his pockets.

"NOOOOO! I can't believe you guys! I thought you were my _FRIENDS_!"

Sakura frowned, then stepped forwards. "We are! That's why we're coming with you! The teams have been reorganised slightly, but our team and TenTen-san's teams are to escort yours to –"

Kiba stared at her, and suddenly his eyes lit up with wild hope. "What?! See! SEE! You need THREE of Konoha's teams to deal with that woman! You see, Danah-san?!"

Neji and Shino were staring at him, stupefied and completely baffled.

"He's an embarrassment." Shino muttered.

"Agreed." Neji replied in disgust.

By now, tears of joy were streaming down Kiba's face and he gazed upwards, fists clenched in triumph. "Oh, THANK YOU! I LOVE YOU, HOKAGE-SAMA! THANK YOU FOR THE MORAL SUPPORT YOU ARE PROVIDING!"

"They're not coming for you, brat."

Tsunade stepped in dignifiedly, and blinked as she saw so many young people in the room. _Oh well … Danah's always had a penchant for attracting this lot … _

"What – what do you mean?"

Kiba had managed to haul himself to his feet, and was standing on Danah's other side, staring at Tsunade fearfully. Standing upright, he would have made a fine specimen of a young man, just the same as all the others had grown up if it hadn't been for the flood of dirt and tears all over his face. And rumpled clothes. And wild eyes. And …

Tsunade sighed, and placed one hand on her waist and pressed lightly against her temple with her other. "They'll just be traveling with you until the border, then continuing on to their own mission. Provided your own goes well, you will join up with them as soon as you finished yours."

Instantly, Kiba jumped again but this time, there was a more determined desperation to his terror and he managed to sound slightly more dignified.

"HOKAGE-SAMA! Have – have you ever considered the possibility that I won't – I won't _live_ to join them later –"

"What rubbish. You'll be fine. Finish up and hurry on to –"

"HOKAGE-SAMA! WHY CAN'T YOU SEND SOMEONE ELSE?"

Smirking, Tsunade feigned sudden interest in her fingernails. "Oh, I couldn't possibly do that, Kiba. Not when Kyoko-obaa-chan _specifically_ asked for _you_. She is very concerned for her daughter's safety –"

Here Kiba emitted a strange squeak, whether it was one of surprise, horror or absolute fright, no one was really sure.

" – And I am in charge of this shinobi village you know. I also value my customers. You see, the way I see it," Here, she raised her eyes, and a wicked gleam sparkled. "If I honour her request this time, maybe she'll come back again – _next_ time."

There was a moment of silence. Naruto was the only one staring in stupefied incomprehension. Everyone else had by now long since lost interest and were staring at their hands, out the window, intently studying the floorboards …

"But – but Hokage-sama … she – you don't understand – last time she –"

By this time, Kiba had gone white, and his eyes reflected some inner horror. He couldn't even get his words out clearly, with the result that his sentences were garbled and jumbled.

"She tried to – me with … her daughter – and I couldn't – I couldn't – _YEEEOOWW!!!_" The memories seemed to finally overwhelm him and to Naruto's bewilderment, he bent forwards, clutching his hands to his head.

Hana had been glaring at him, but now she smirked. "What are you talking about, Kiba? Kagura is the best, most sweetest –"

"NO SHE'S NOT, SHE'S EXACTLY LIKE _YOU_!"

"What the … so what's your point?" Hana's voice was now a dangerous hiss.

Tsunade gritted her teeth. Enough was enough.

"That's it. You lot, out. I don't know why you're all in here. Time is pressing, no one has answered my summons, and the noise level was so bad I had to come see." She watched as Hana grabbed hold of Kiba and started dragging him out, Shino and Neji sighing and following resignedly. Raising her head, she gazed sleepily at Danah.

"And why are you still here?"

Danah blinked. "What – what do you mean, Tsunade-sama?"

"Danah-san."

Danah turned at the soft voice, and saw Hinata stepping out from behind Sakura.

"Danah, san, we actually came with some news for you. I came to collect you, but I met Sakura-san on the way, and she has a summons for Naruto-kun." Hinata glanced across at Tsunade and giggled. "Well, she summoned both Sasuke-kun and Naruto-kun to come see her in her office, but as she's here now …" Hinata turned back, and her silvery eyes because grave again.

Danah slowly felt her hands slide from Naruto's ones, and slide down to her side, Turning, she stared at Hinata's steady and serious gaze.

"What … what do you mean?"

Danah watched, confused and bewildered as Hinata approached her, and gently took her limp hands in her own. She looked directly into her eyes and her voice dropped.

"Well … the Elite Field Platoon just returned …"

Naruto suddenly went stiff, and a small gasp whistled from between his clenched teeth. His eyes locked with Sakura's, who shook her head slightly, so slight it was almost inconspicuous. Danah did not seem to have noticed.

"Hinata … I – I'm afraid I don't understand what you're –"

"Danah-san, there were only four in that group. The back-up team are to return soon, but … of the original team, only three were admitted into hospital. And they're – they're so badly wounded they can't even maintain consciousness. And they are some of our best Elite Jounin."

Tsunade felt her irritation rising as she saw Danah's bewildered, slow look.

"What she's saying is … Elite Field Platoon was Kakashi's assigned team. And he hasn't checked in to the hospital. He didn't even come in with them."

It might have been a thundering shock for anyone else. Indeed, the room was so deathly silent, especially after all the goings on only a few seconds ago. When eyes met eyes, they were just looks of plain horror and confusion. Everyone was aware of Elite Field Platoon, even if Danah didn't know …

But Danah's eyes met Tsunade's, and she knew …in an instant she knew …

No one else would have believed it, if they hadn't seen it … it was, in fact, incredible to imagine that someone who was so broken in so many places, someone who was in so much hidden pain, could move so fast.

Just how fast they realized, when they turned … a mere rustle of robes, and Danah had already disappeared.

* * *


	3. Winds Of Change Part 1

DISCLAIMER: 'Naruto' is not mine, that happy honour belongs to Kishimoto Masashi! All I own are the new characters and my continuing plot and storyline.

I won't bother with the excuses and apologies (well apologies, yes, if you will accept them)

**Chapter 3: Winds Of Change (Part 1)**

Why part 1? Because this chapter turned out longer and more complicated than I thought, so here's Part 1 … Part 2 should follow very shortly)

**Spoilers: **Yes … A MAJOR (BEAUTIFUL!!) spoiler on Chapter 342. Sorry guys, but this was TOO WONDERFUL! Again, it fitted wonderfully to my planned storyline, though I had to change a few details around a bit. Although I hadn't quite imagined it in such terrible circumstances, but still …

**Warnings:** OK … LANGUAGE. At least PG15+ or something. Yes, there will be language usage here. What can I say? They're adolescents.

**DEDICATED TO Savvy0X, as I promised … And you know why … :)**

One more thing … I always offer that if anyone wants any of the songs I used in either 'Blossoms' or 'Flower', then all you have to do is ask … Got it?

* * *

Nothing. 

Not the feel of the midday breeze, not the warmth of the sun on her body. Not even the greetings of the people who waved to her. Not the voices, the murmuring, the laughter as everyone went about their daily business.

Her heart hurt. It was so sore, so painful inside her chest. All she could concentrate on was running. It was only the desperation, the shock, the need, the terrible, terrible yearning inside her that propelled her onwards.

The dust skidded as she came to an ungainly stop, fingers clutching at the corner of the building that stood at the top of the darker side street. Small, closely-set apartments towered, mean and sulky. Here, the darkness of the buildings themselves seemed to drive out the sunlight. No matter how many times she had been here, it had always been dim and silent, and she'd had to squint in the semi-darkness.

Her chest was heaving by the time she reached one of the tall buildings, her fingers scrabbling with the door that suddenly seemed so heavy. And the stairs here were terrible … her breath rasp at every few steps, catching tightly in the prison of her chest.

Darkness. Silence. Emptiness. These were the things that reigned in this corridor. And the inhabitants didn't care. Perhaps that was because they spent as little time as possible in these rooms; after all, those who held the keys to these silent rooms hardly had the chances to be here. It was just a room to call their own, something to say to make it sound like they had a place to return to, to make it sound as if they had somewhere to go …

By the time she reached the door, her vision had almost gone white, so blindingly hot was her pain. But then something unknown surged in that place where her heart was – she wouldn't know, because the force with which it was thundering in her chest, it certainly didn't feel like her heart …

The tears were already streaming as she quietly, gently pushed open the door.

Darkness. Silence.

_Death_.

It was a place that had known no one for almost three years. The dust that lightly iced the sparse furniture in the room spoke of the loneliness this room had felt, the absence of its master. Any lively spirit that had occupied this room had fled from it long ago, leaving only a trace, a ghost of itself.

_I can almost see him return to this room, day after day …_

_As a boy, even after that horror happened …_

_Return here, every day … pull something simple, quick and instant to eat from that tiny cupboard … something quick, because there was no time for anything more …_

_Every day just a struggle to live …_

_I can see him sit and work quietly at this table … his studies … his manuals … mission reports …_

_Just like Naruto …_

_Just like Sasuke …_

_I can see him … leave this room early in the morning, come back as late as possible at night … that way he'd spend as little time as he could, he would spend that with his friends … _

… _who are now long gone …_

She couldn't have known when or how exactly she reached the bed. Only that this was where her thundering, burning heart was leading her …

His body was fatigued, she didn't need to use any special powers to see that. His body was so worn out, so strained that she could have even felt it, had she herself been in any more stable a state.

And yet … the slightly quivering arm that shifted, the lethargic way it tried to move aside the thin, insubstantial bedsheet, the weary hand that patted, in slow motion, the space he had created underneath the sheet …

She didn't know if she was already crying. Probably. It wasn't anything surprising, or anything, actually. It was her, just her, lately. It was the wound inside that never healed – the wound inside that broke every time she cried, the wound that broke every time she _didn't_ cry.

But her fingers, her tired, lifeless fingers still managed to slip off her outer long waistcoat, a soft rustle as it fell to the floor. Her tired, wasted body somehow found its way to the bed, gathering up her long dress, sunk listlessly into it. She let her own feeble weight and gravity pull her down against the pillow …

… And from nowhere, felt the remains of whatever strength he had pull her up against him, her back firmly against his chest, his arm sliding around her tiny waist. And then ever so slowly, just like the beating heart of a newborn baby, a soft, gentle thud of his heartbeat.

Nothing was said. There was nothing to say. Words and whatever useless meaning they brought had dried up a long time ago. They had nothing to say to each other … yet.

Now, it was just a time to feel. To remember what it was like. To see what had changed.

The slight, tiny pressure against her waist caused her eyes to slide open, and she blinked suddenly, shocked to find her vision blurry and unfocussed. Wet pillow as she tried to turn her head.

_Idiot_, scolding herself mentally as her lethargic body tried to shift around. _This is no time for tears … stop it …_

And just then, through a crack in his curtain, a beam of the cheerful sunlight streamed through, determined to penetrate the darkness.

And it touched the glorious, beautiful silver in his hair …

_And his eyes … _

_However damaged, however blackened around the outside, however heavy from sleepless nights and horrible visions … _

She shifted closer. And sighed … a slow, soft sigh that gently escaped her parted lips.

_They're still the most beautiful, beautiful thing …_

Something escaped him, some strange, small sound as those eyes slid closed. A small little whisper almost, a tiny sob as he felt her leaning forwards. As he felt something trembling, and loving, and soft press against his closed, sore eyes.

As that same soft part of her lingered there, like a breath of summer wind, and ever so gently, so tenderly moved across, upwards, gliding across his furrowed, creased forehead.

And now, something painful and joyful at the same time flowed from her lips, something that might have been a sigh, a sob, a laugh, a kiss …

The feel of her quivering, trembling fingers on his bare shoulder. The shy, almost timid way they crept so slowly around him. The sudden warmth as he felt her shift closer, the sound from her lips becoming more pronounced now, the wetness of the wound inside her trickling from her own closed eyes.

Then suddenly, she had her arms around him fully, around his waist, her head pressing against him, buried in his neck, and her small, lithe, almost emaciated little body heaving as raw tortured, agonized pain took over her reserve, broke down the tall, black and forbidding walls that had been half-heartedly constructed around her heart.

Numb. He was so numb, but all he could do was tighten the pressure of his arm around her waist, try to contain her, to stop the flood of her tears. He couldn't even muster the strength to slide his arms fully around her, couldn't even stroke her back, her hair.

Couldn't even return her kisses.

But it didn't really matter. Because eventually, although it seemed like an eternity, he felt her body calm down. He felt her settle against him, her body fitting snugly, warmly against his, just so perfectly as if she had always belonged there, safe in his arms.

Which she had. Of course. Always.

And soon, her felt the tension leave, felt her relaxing, and her arms fitted more easily around him. The fingers that stroked his hair no longer trembled. The soft, sweet breaths against his face and neck were smooth and even, not rough and jagged with the force of trying to control her breathing. And as she shifted even closer against his body, the gentle loveliness of her steady heartbeat seemed to be trying to synchronise his own. And the chill he didn't even know he was feeling was already melting away.

And then, when his eyes slid open and found themselves locked into hers, only a few inches away, the years started to fall away.

Because once again, he was falling, falling into those clear blue depths, the endless freedom, the carefree beauty of the eternal skies.

And this time, somehow, the strength had surged up from some part of him, and he found he was able to move. Found he was able to take her in both arms and pull her closer. Found his heart, which had been settling into its steady, cheerful rhythm suddenly beat just slightly faster as his lips closed over hers.

When she heard his voice, there was no surge of horror, or pain or any such thing. No sudden breaking of the magic that was slowly settling around again. Even though it sounded as if something terrible was living, growing inside him. Although it was a cracking, rasping, wheezing sound that might have turned anyone else's blood curdle instantly.

But it was still his voice.

This was still the man she loved. That she loved so very, very much.

"Hey."

This time, when their eyes met, her lips tilted automatically into a smile, and there, just as carefully preserved as if it had been three years ago, was her smile. That beautiful, shy, cheeky smile that he adored.

"Hey yourself."

Although it hurt, he couldn't help it. His lips curved slightly upwards, but it was his eyes that chuckled. It was the beauty of his eyes that made up for the lack of the throat, husky chuckle that she also loved very much. The deep chuckle that always resonated throughout her body …

"You're … you're late …"

Her eyes shot open, and a look of mock anger overcame them – anger that was already giving away quickly to a delighted smile pulling at her lips.

"Of all the cheek … Who is it who's telling me that _I'm_ late …"

This time when he laughed, it certainly had the deep, husky element in his chuckle, but it almost instantly gave way to a painful fit of coughing, a sudden spasm that overtook the immobility of his lethargic body and tried to jerk him upright.

Instantly, Danah sat up, her arms tightly wrapping around his body, pulling him as tightly as possible against her own, trying to stop the vicious jerking movements, which she knew must be lethally painful.

"I'll get you water …"

Her movements as if to spring from the bed were abruptly stopped by the force of pressure on her wrist. Turning back, she stared in panicked surprise at the relatively firm grip of his fingers. Her eyes met his, and softened when they saw the look in them, and her body responded when she felt him pull her against him.

Leaning back against the wall, he struggled to breathe deeply in an upright position, and realized that the choking fit had done one good thing; it seemed to have rejuvenated his lifeless limbs. He found he was able to move again. And this time, he gathered her slender body more firmly, more powerfully pulling her against him. One strong arm tightly around her waist, the other easily fully encircling her shoulders, feeling the soft silk of her hair.

"You don't have to get me anything. All I want is right here … right within my arms."

Unseeing. Once more her eyes were glazed, listening quietly as her head lay against his shoulder, listening to his voice as it resonated throughout her body, the soft waves like calming silk …

She gasped slightly as his arms shifted, as his beautiful mismatched eyes suddenly came into view before her. Instantly, her body tensed, as if even the pained everything inside her was being dulled, the pain being pushed aside …

It was the closeness of this man she had loved for so long. A gentle warming began at the pit of her stomach, a languorous pooling of delicious feeling that thickened her blood and heightened her senses to nothing else but him. His touch. His scent. All of him …

Once again, her arms slid upwards, finding their way around his shoulders, locking in position, trying to pull him as close towards her as she could. As her arms crossed each other after slipping around his shoulders, she closed her eyes as her fingers slid slowly upwards, her slender hand sinking effortlessly into his thick silvery silky hair.

The pain in her body was forgotten as she shifted herself, trying to face him more fully. Her hands slowly slid down, pressing against his powerful, tightly controlled shoulders. As he buried his face in her neck, her eyes closed. In unconscious reaction, her hand crept from his shoulders to caress the hard planes of his chest as he continued to shower her face with soft little kisses, playfully evading her seeking mouth. Under her seeking fingers she felt the muscles jump in reaction to her touch, and the warmth that had begun somewhere deep inside slowly crept upwards, seeping into every pore of skin …

"I love you."

_I love you …_

"I trust you."

_I trust you …_

He gasped. _What …?_

_This … this … _

… _An echo …_

… _This is what she said to me … all those years ago … before I left …_

At her sound of her painfully quiet voice, her trembling, quivering words, he had looked up, raised his head, and found his eyes locked with hers. Her body, her soul so sated in her glazed love, she wasn't aware that he'd moved forwards, that swiftly, tenderly, he'd already claimed her lips.

At first, and as always, brushing, teasing, grazing them gently. Then, as she had expected, hot, wet, and dizzying in the pleasure that they sent pulsing through her bloodstream. It was the feeling under her hands, her hands caressing his back and his upper arms with all their innocent and pure, raw adoration, loving the feel of his muscles tensing reflexively under her touch. In turn, the way his rough, calloused hand, the baby tender softness with which it traced the curve of her cheek with his finger, the rough silk of his touch sending shudders of longing through her. She felt it trail over the arch of her brow, the flare of her cheekbones, the delicate line of her nose. She was so overwhelmed by the sensations of his mouth taking hers, of having him so close to her she could feel the pounding of his heart against hers …

Seemingly, from the moment she'd entered, from his touches, his kisses, it seemed she didn't fully notice the dullness in his eyes. She didn't notice the strange stiffness of his body, the tension in the air. It seemed she didn't understand …

"Danah … Danah, please – please listen to me. There's …" He took a deep breath. "There's something … we have to talk about …"

Slowly, she drew back, her eyes meeting, locking with his grave ones. "Do … do we really have something to talk about this _that _seriously?"

His arms shifted, the gravity of his eyes almost weighing her down. Somewhere, deep in the pit of her stomach, something unpleasant seemed to swirl, but it was banished the instant his eyes flickered. Shifting once again, his lips met the side of her face, and her eyes slid closed. Closing his eyes as well, he felt like he wanted to stay this way forever …

"You said," She whispered, drawing away, clasping his hands and holding them in both her own, shifting backwards and staring down at him, "That we have to talk."

"Y-Yes. We have to … talk, yes … of course." Kakashi managed to whisper, staring up at her.

"All right." Danah said.

"All right." Kakashi repeated. His mind whirled. Everything and anything that had been lurking within him rose to the surface, waiting to spill out … all, everything he had been thinking of, fearing …

Then his eyes refocused and locked with hers.

"We're done talking." He managed to whisper hoarsely before pulling her against his body, his arms tightening securely, protectively, tenderly around her, his lips desperately, almost hungrily covering hers.

* * *

"Look. It's not that bad." 

Silence.

"You won't be alone."

Silence.

"Think of it like a paid vacation. You don't even have a _mission_."

Silence.

"Come on, Kiba. What's really so bad about it? I mean, _really_ bad about it?"

Kiba's hands dropped from where they'd been holding his head up, and he glared poisonous daggers at Shino, who frowned at the intensity of hatred emanating from Kiba.

"Bite me."

Shino stiffened. _What the hell_?

"Oi."

Kiba's gaze shifted sulkily to Shikamaru, and he resented him for leaning back so comfortably, for his ability to assume such a carefree lazy-as-all-hell posture when Kiba's life was in danger.

"You do realise we're stuck with those two women throughout this mission?" Kiba's eyes locked with Shikamaru's brown ones, a delicate eyebrow tilted, and he continued calmly. "Yes you chicken shit, you know which women I'm talking about, and you know what they're capable of when they're irritated."

Kiba stiffened. In fact, he went so positively white, that even Chouji turned and stared at him curiously.

"You also know you're a half-assed bastard who has been a constant source of irritation?"

Kiba growled.

"So, if I were you, I'd drop the freak-out act –"

" – It's not an act, you dick!"

" – Just face whatever you have to like a man, it it's at all possible with you –"

" – What did you just say?! –"

" – and just calm myself down as if it's any other regular mission." With that, Shikamaru stretched his arms, slipped them behind his head and slouched deeper into the seat, his eyes sliding closed.

Hinata glanced over at her teammate worriedly; he looked _this_ close to killing someone.

"What the fuck is that guy's problem?!" Kiba exploded, pointing a finger at Shikamaru, who just sighed. "I mean, why is he so carefree? If I'm stuck with them, so are you, have you thought about that, you lazy ass?"

As Shikamaru thought about this, his face went progressively blue – although this had occurred to him, he'd thought about how much better off he was compared to Kiba's own circumstances, but the bare facts of the case were just as Kiba had pointed out …

"HEY! Stop stuffing your face!"

All Ino wanted to do was strangle Chouji and know she'd gotten away with it. He was the only one present, aside from Sai, who was completely ignorant of any sort of crisis. He was, with the ease of extended hours of practice, neatly and evenly ensuring the meat pieces were fried and distributed while also ensuring they were packed away into his mouth with as much efficiency.

He eyed her, but if he noticed she was almost as close to exploding as Kiba was, he either chose to ignore it, or he was just ignorant of that fact regardless. "I'm hungry."

"You've been eating for the past _two hours_! Give it a _rest_!"

"Are you kidding me? I'm just getting started! Look at how much I have to do!" He motioned urgently to the plates a waiter was staggering forwards with, hurrying forward to deposit them on the table.

Ino's face was already beyond the colour of the red flame grill. Now it was fast becoming blotchily purple. Chouji didn't seem to notice anything, and held out a piece of well-done speared meat. "Here, want some?"

As he held it out, his arm accidentally knocked a bottle of tomato sauce. The lid came loose and the viscous red contents steadily oozed themselves all over Kiba's sleeve, who momentarily blinked stupidly at it, as if only registering what it was, then he flipped, starting up violently and frantically wiping the viscous gook off his wrist cuff.

"The hell?! Fuck, can't take you _any_where!"

Hinata quietly sat forward and picking up tissues methodically started mopping up the mess. Kiba watched her hand, dazed, then groaned. A loud slap suddenly resounded as his forehead hit the table.

"I can't believe they're all doing this to me! This can't be happening … what have I _ever_ done to the Hokage …Oh …" Slumping, cradling his head in his hands, his cheek pressed against the grain of the wood, his eyes wild and unseeing.

"Perhaps … perhaps there is something deeper to this mission than it seems."

The soft voice beside him was as sweet and comforting as it had always been. He dropped his hands and squinted across at Hinata. "What do you mean?"

She smiled softly. "That, for example, your very presence in that household might be a meaning for something else, not necessarily what we are all led to believe."

Everyone watched as Kiba chewed this over. No one fully understood why it this strange mission was affecting him so powerfully; the dark circles under his eyes and the dishevelled hair were just a couple of the indicators of his wild desperation.

"That'd be right. I mean, why else would someone request a chuunin like that? Unless there was a secondary issue? Requesting Konoha Shinobi are expensive, you know. Especially for the time duration they are asking."

Kiba's eyes shifted, gazing at Shikamaru a bit more hopefully. He was slumped way down in his section of the long seat, and his knees pressed against the table edge. Hands were resting behind his head and his eyes were closed. He seemed to have recovered well from the silent heart attack Kiba had given him.

"And anyway. What kind of moron would want Kiba?"

Shikamaru's eyes slowly opened, probably on his naturally enhanced instincts at the sudden rise in danger, then he jumped, startled as he felt Sakura's and Ino's furious eyes on him. Two loud slaps resounded as Kiba slammed his palms on the wooden table, half-rising. "Shikamaru you asshole. You want me to cut off your –"

"Goooood MORNING!!"

Kiba's nerves were so raw by now, he was at the stage where any unexpected event scared the daylights out of him. He screamed and was actually in the process of leaping over Sakura's and Ino's heads to get away when he felt himself yanked backwards by someone firmly holding onto his shirt collar.

"It's only me, you moron, calm down."

Half-choking, Kiba managed to twist his head around and found himself staring into a pair of amused, bright blue eyes.

Kiba would never really fully know how Naruto had managed to turn up out of nowhere, but he now stood next to his seat, staring at him. Grinning broadly, Naruto slipped his hands behind his head.

Kiba stared blankly at him, unseeing, then groaned, burying his head on the table again.

Naruto blinked, then chuckled. "There's a welcome."

Naruto's eyes shifted around, taking in all the occupants of the table. His gaze suddenly locked on the mysterious dark figure sitting directly opposite Kiba.

"Oh -! Shino!" Hinata jumped violently and reeled backwards in her seat as Naruto leaned over her, staring in shock at Shino.

Shino calmly pushed his dark glasses up. "What is it?"

Naruto stared at him. "I didn't recognise you."

Shino frowned. "You recognised Kiba right away."

Naruto blinked. "Eh? Well …" Straightening, he scratched the back of his head sheepishly. "It's uh … It's been a while, and –"

"Oi, Naruto."

Kiba, who hadn't been paying attention to the exchange, rudely interrupted and invited himself into the conversation, unaware of everyone's frowns. He'd propped himself up on one arm and was squinting up. "So where did Danah-san disappear to this morning?"

Naruto opened his mouth to reply, then paused. Before he could say anything anyway, Sakura's irritated voice cut sharply through.

"I'm sure whatever she was doing or wherever she was going, it had nothing to do with you, Kiba," Sakura spat at him.

Kiba's eyes widened and he sat up, looking highly insulted. "What's with that? I'm just taking an interest in my friends' lives." He glared indignantly.

"You mean, sticking your overlarge nose in where it doesn't belong," Ino said cuttingly, large blue eyes accusingly glaring at him over her drink.

"Is Kiba-kun being what they describe as an 'insensitive wart'?"

This interesting observation came from the very calm and composed Sai, who was looking at Sakura seriously for her answer.

Ino's eyes bulged and she almost choked on the straw. Sakura frowned but couldn't hide her smile. She nodded back seriously. "Oh yes. That's right, Sai-kun."

"The hell?! What did you just say, you shit?"

Sai stared back calmly at Kiba, who was by now so angry Chouji could have easily put the meat on his face. "What are you staring at me like that for? Don't make me hit you."

Naruto scratched the back of his head, staring at Sai. _He still has a lot of socialising work to do …_

Kiba was still screaming. "What – what the hell are you smiling for?! Do you know how irritating your face is to me right now?"

Sai blinked, puzzled. "Really? But I have read that a smile is the best way to get out of trouble. I do not understand why it is irritating."

Kiba exploded. "What the fuck is wrong with this guy?!"

"Sit down!" Ino hissed, glancing across at the restaurant manager who was sending them a look that could freeze lava. "Kiba, shut your big mouth and sit down!"

There was a tense silence, before Sakura suddenly sat up, as if remembering something. She glanced up at Naruto.

"Where – um, Naruto, where …"

"Naruto, where is –"

Sakura stopped and glared across at Ino, who glared right back.

"What is it Ino-pig-chan? You can't possibly have anything interesting to ask. Your brain wouldn't be able to take it."

"Why, you – you've got as much chance of going out with Sasuke-kun than an elephant –"

"You would know wouldn't you, seeing you almost are one!"

Naruto had looked up on hearing his name called simultaneously. Shifting slightly, he glanced over at the girls. Both their faces were red, and the temperature was rising steadily, having nothing to do with Chouji's cooking. Naruto grinned to himself.

"Oh … him." Instantly, Ino took a sudden interest in the wooden grain of the table, Sakura was looking at him fully, her beautiful blue-green eyes sparkling and eager.

Naruto dropped his arms and his head tilted to one side, thinking deeply. A frown marred his forehead for an instant before suddenly his brows cleared. Meeting Sakura's eager eyes again – he shrugged. "I'm not exactly sure."

Sakura's eyebrow twitched. A vein in Ino's forehead popped.

Just as Hinata felt she would have to leap up and protect Naruto from being attacked by two furious women, he grinned widely. "He was with me, right behind me, he must have …"

He abruptly turned and stuck his head out of the window, scanning the street. His eyes fell on the buildings opposite. Everyone followed his gaze and their own eyes widened. _What the hell … Is that – that can't be…?!_

"OI, SASUKE!"

A tall, dark figure, directly across from their line of sight. Arms folded across his chest, leaning back against the shade of the closed restaurant across from the diner. His head had been bowed, and the cheerful wind had done what it liked with the long, silky black hair framing both sides of his face. But at Naruto's shout, they saw his body tense and his head slowly rose.

Even from this distance, Sakura's breath hitched. She well remembered Sasuke from the previous night, when he and Naruto had pulled their masks off. And even then her heart had gone into a frenzy of cardiac rhythm. And now, even now … in the brightness of the sunshine …

Beauty had always smiled down on the sons of Uchiha. And now, it seemed that for the dwindling line, it had increased a hundred-fold, as if it was making up for all the ones it could lavish itself on.

The breeze lightly fingered long, silky black hair that framed the perfectly chiselled, beautifully contoured ivory skin. The dark eyes were like still pools brimming with unseen, terrifying energy below the surface. The casual elegance of his frame as he leaned against the wall, hands in pockets, the top few buttons of his white shirt carelessly left open, the long black waistcoat draped over it as if it were just an afterthought.

Although both of them had become ridiculously handsome, there was something extra, something deeper about the dark-haired young man. _He's … become so beautiful. As if … he's not of this world anymore …_

… _He's become a God …_

Tall, elegant, refined. There was the same careless grace and beauty that even –

"Remember you told me to tell you when you were acting like a dick?"

Scandal. That was the first reaction from everyone else except the happy-go-lucky ball of sunshine and fluff who was happily hanging out of the window. The occupants at the table were watching with a mixture of shock, humour, scandal and everything in between. And Naruto had the brightest smile plastered across his face.

There were a few gasps of shock from neighbouring tables, a few clatters and clashes from waiters dropping their trays, the customary screams of dismay from ignorant people who promptly went on to slip on the resulting mess and general chaos.

Sasuke barely shifted. A delicate black eyebrow rose briefly in disdain …

The brightness of Naruto's smile was so bright, it would have dimmed out the sun.

"Well, you're being a dick."

Even from this distance across the street, the sheer strength of his gaze was powerful. The dark eyes flickered momentarily, then dropping his arms, he smirked and turned into the nearby alleyway. As he turned, everyone's eyes fell on the proud red-and-white symbol emblazoned across the back of his black waistcoat. Pausing, he turned his head slightly. And his voice carried across the street, clear and strong.

"I'll pretend you didn't just say that, in taking into consideration that breathing is still an activity you enjoy, Naruto. Correct?"

Then without another word, he's leapt effortlessly into the darkness of the alleyway, disappearing.

Gasps and silence. And as everyone's gaze fell on Naruto, they got another surprise there. For instead of his customary furious scowl, there was a lingering smile.

"Well … I guess that's a good sign … it means he's somewhat taken the stick out of his ass for today, at least …"

Everyone watched, amazed as Naruto turned, proceeded to slip off his long white coat and settle in happily at the end of the row, eagerly reaching for a prong and watching the meat still sizzling away. He frowned.

"Hey! Chouji you asshole, you've been letting the meat burn!"

Chouji screeched in dismay and the table was a frantic flurry of activity as the remaining meat was salvaged and the ones lost were mourned.

Kiba was resting his head on one hand and looking thoughtfully at his old classmate. "I got to say … I didn't really notice earlier, but – Naruto doesn't have that idiot look on his face anymore. He's changed, eh?"

A vein dangerously throbbing in Sakura's forehead however, took a different meaning. She glared as he frantically flapped his fingers at the slightly burning meat and yelled when he grabbed at one only to have it scald his skin. "Oh no. He _definitely_ hasn't changed at all."

Naruto sat back, annoyed, and raised his rand to rub at his nose, leaving an enormous blob of charcoal there. He caught Hinata's gaze and suddenly beamed widely, setting off a furious blush.

Sakura sighed again, though the corners of her mouth twitched – even her irritation had been dispelled at the sight of the enormous sunshine of Naruto's smile. "Yep … Naruto hasn't changed at all …"

Of all of the small party, Sai had been the only one, expressionless, silent, beautiful, empty dark eyes watching the ruckus quietly.

"Naruto-kun …"

"Hmm …?" Naruto didn't even spare him a glance, he and Chouji being too busy salvaging the remaining meat.

"Does Sasuke-kun normally have a stick up his ass?"

People like Kiba, who had been keeping his head buried in his hands and sulkily watching the proceedings, was startled into speech – in his case, a shocked squeak. The girls sighed, feeling embarrassed on behalf of the tactless Sai, Sakura resuming her gazing out of the window and Ino taking a deep breath and a cup of cool water. Shikamaru snorted, having reverted to a light snooze. But Naruto didn't even bat an eyelid.

"Yeah, he does, Sai. You have one too, you know."

Kiba screeched and ducked out of the way as a shower of water erupted from Ino's mouth. Oblivious to the absence of decorum, she placed her cup down and stared from Naruto, who was still picking at the meat with Chouji, to Sai, who was gazing at him with serious dark eyes.

"I do?"

Naruto nodded seriously. "Oh yeah. Except yours can be easily removed." He stuck his tongue out in concentration as he flipped over a well-done piece of meat.

"Is that so?" Sai tilted his head, thoughtfully studying the ceiling. Then his eyebrows rose, as if he was remembering something. "Oh. Then is that similar to having a bit of string between the legs?"

A tombstone silence followed this. Sai had been thoughtfully gazing at the ceiling, but now upon looking down, he noted with puzzlement the shocked faces.

"Oh. It appears I have said something I ought not to have said." Sai tilted his head slightly and looked up at the ceiling. "Perhaps I have to study the books more intently."

"No."

Naruto rolled his sleeves up slightly and grinned brightly at Sai, who blinked silently back.

"You just got to hang out with us a bit more."

Sai stared at Naruto, then his eyes crinkled at the corners. He smiled.

"Yes, I think you are right."

"Hey listen."

Everyone looked up at Kiba, who was sitting back next to Naruto and stuffing his face; it seemed somehow he had managed to get his appetite back. It was an amazing sight. Once again, he'd tuned out right in the middle of the tense conversation, only to discovered particularly well-cooked pieces of meat.

"So, what rank are you guys now?"

Naruto, rolling his sleeves back to reach over and take another piece of meat, paused. Turning, he stared into Kiba's quizzical brown eyes, mouth working away determinedly at the meat. "Well?"

_Rank? Heck …_

Naruto cleared his throat and shrugged. "Haven't a clue. We didn't have time to mess around with all that."

Only Hinata seemed to notice he was giving an unnecessary amount of attention to the meat that was frying in front of him, his forehead slightly marred by a frown. She took a sip of water, carefully, thoughtfully watching him while Kiba spluttered indignantly.

"The hell? What do you mean, 'mess around'?! We've been working our asses off these last few years to get to Chuunin and –"

Kiba reeled sideways as the contents of Naruto's mouth sprayed out. Enormous blue eyes turned and stared at a disgusted and screeching Kiba, while his hand remained locked tightly over his mouth, trying to stop from choking on the remains.

"_Eeek! _Naruto you disgusting twit!"

"Argh -! Get this guck _off_ me!"

"Ch-Ch-_Chuunin_?! You guys are all _chuunin_ now?!"

Naruto sat very still as the bustle at the table continued while the others alternately exclaimed disgustedly at the partially digested food particles.

"Naruto-kun … haven't you and Sasuke-kun had a grading from your teachers yet?"

Naruto acknowledged the soft voice but didn't look at its owner, his eyes still unseeing. "Gr … grading … I don't know anything about that …" Suddenly his eyes snapped into focus. "So – so you're all Chuunin … what about –"

"Neji-san is Jounin though," Sakura said thoughtfully, her head tilted as she tried to remember. Her eyes brightened. "Oh, and Temari-san as well … hmmm … and who else …"

"Kankurou." Shikamaru's voice mumbled from his stretched out position.

"Oh, that's right!" Ino grinned. She leaned forwards, her head tilted slightly. "And aren't you going to ask about –"

"I already know."

The instant it escaped his lips, he locked eyes with Sakura. And they both looked down.

_Gaara …_

Naruto's mind reeled back the past few months. The messages … the summons … Sakura … Sai … Captain Yamato …

Gaara … the horror they had done to him …

Sasuke's absence …

He gritted his teeth. This was something most people didn't know about. No one had said they were to keep silent …

_But onee-chan … my own onee-chan didn't even know …_

"Eh? How the heck did you know he was Kazekage?"

Naruto cleared his throat, glancing sideway sat Kiba's incredulous gaze, and carefully not looking at Sakura. "Um, well …"

Sai had been watching this silently. He noted with slight interest the way Naruto and Sakura were avoiding each other's gazes, the strange vibration of emotions he could detect from them. His mind spun with words, pictures, sentences … and he realised what the emotion around the table was.

_Discomfort … Uneasiness …_

And his sharp mind, having made the connections, flickered instantly to chapter three, page one-hundred-and-seventeen of the manual he was currently studying …

"_In situations where the atmosphere can be sensed to be one of discomfort and uneasiness, where a colleague has been 'put on the spot', so to say, the decent thing to do, if possible, is try the simplest, most oldest trick – distraction …"_

Sai's eyes gently wandered over the group and decided on the distraction.

"Kiba-kun."

Sai's voice rang clear and pleasant across the pin-drop silence. Kiba started up suddenly at the voice addressing him and turned irritably, looking past Shikamaru at Sai. "What is it?"

Sai was watching Kiba's expression with interest. He seemed to study something for a minute, then collecting his thoughts, smiled widely.

"I have read, Kiba-kun, that if one keeps their face looking like you currently have positioned yours, then the wind may blow unfavourably, and it will remain like that."

It was a picture. Kiba's dropped mouth, the wide eyes, the incredulous hit-by-a-truck expression. By now though, everyone was staring at Sai – who hadn't finished.

"But, perhaps, Kiba-kun … it will be an improvement, somewhat, if that were to be the case."

Like a true goldfish, it was hard to know what to say, let alone get any words out at all. Instead, Kiba's face gradually went from normal, to red to purple in interesting shades that thrilled Sai to study.

Sai smiled again. By now everyone at the table had forgotten completely about eating, drinking, cooking, dozing … they anticipating the explosion as they watched the exchange in fascinated horror, feeling entertained and simultaneously wondering at the fastest route of escape.

"After all, someone like you with your common face … you wouldn't want to walk around for the rest of your life looking like yourself, would you?"

"_WHAT THE FREAKING HELL DID YOU JUST SAY?! YOU LITTLE TWISTED WEIRDO CREEPY SON OF A –_"

"_KIIIIIIIIIIIIIBAAAAAAAAAAA!_ "

Kiba froze, half standing from his seat. It was amazing the speed with which the purple blotches on his face disappeared, going back to normal, then rapidly replaced by a deadly pale white.

"That … that voice is a little too familiar …"

"_THAT BETTER NOT BE YOU SCREAMING THE PLACE DOWN! SO HELP YOU, IF I FIND IT'S YOU, I'M CUTTING THEM OFF!"_

Kiba turned in agonising slow motion and really did die. Again.

The terrifying figure of Hana, stomping across the restaurant. And before her, the waves seemed to part.

Making strange whimpering sounds, Kiba had vaulted over and disappeared at top speed before the figure had even reached the table.

Inuzuka Hana arrived at the table and raised her eyebrows at the stricken, white, shocked, stunned expressions all round.

All except for one – the handsome, strange dark-haired boy who smiled at her widely. And it seemed Sai had spent the time contemplating what Hana had screamed out. "It looks like you'll have to sew them back on first."

Hana opened her mouth to speak, then stopped, staring, unable to know how to respond. No one else could bring themselves to even think about talking either.

Sai looked up at her, puzzled. "I assumed you were talking about his penis, am I correct?"

This time, even Hana, who usually was irrepressible, was shocked into silence, gaping at this strange boy.

But Naruto and Sakura stared at each other, then slowly across at Sai. Sai caught Naruto's eyes and smiled back.

_A … Amazing …_

_Did … did Sai just …_

Sakura caught Naruto's gaze and a tiny ghost of a smile passed her lips.

_There's hope yet …_

* * *

Once again, she was oblivious to the called out greetings and exclamations. Maybe this time, it was deliberate. 

Her feet shuffled miserably in the dust. Feelings, thoughts, emotions … anger, pain, fury, bitterness … all rose up and swirled in an unhealthy cloud. A cloud that hung over her, shaped her, enveloped her. And above all these confused feelings …

An aching, throbbing sadness. Something large and lonely and heavy that beat with every stroke of her heart …

Reaching the house, she stepped inside, listening for a moment. Then quietly closing the door, she made her way to the closest bedroom on her right.

Peeping around the door, she gazed momentarily at the little bundle curled up on the bed, a mass of glossy brown hair catching the glint of the sunlight streaming in from the window, cheerful white curtains fluttering and billowing.

As she made her way to the bed, her eyes never leaving the tiny figure, it seemed with each step her heart lifted a little more. Reaching the bed, she gently sat down, now gazing fully at the handsome little boy who slept on, peaceful in his slumber and oblivious to her breaking heart.

She felt the tears start again as she shifted forwards and gathered his little body against hers. She watched him shift sleepily, then his enormous eyes blinked, focussing on hers.

She could never tell, never begin to describe the powerful emotion exploding within her. Could never describe the painful, beautiful, joyful, anguished memory that surged at the sight of the little boy, the tiny, helpless little body, the trust and love in his eyes …

… Only they were a different colour to the bright, shimmering blue. _The last little boy I held like this was my little baby brother … _

But as those eyes widened and became filled with their customary delight and adoring love, as they did every time they saw her, and as those tiny little fingers eagerly scrabbled and arms locked around her neck, she could already feel herself smiling.

"Nee-chan! Oh … you just disappeared, everyone was so worried … are you all right now?! Oh, did you see Tsunade-sama? She summoned you to her office the moment you got back … Oh, Nee-chan, are you –"

"Wait, wait, wait!" She laughingly, gently pressed two fingers over his lips, silencing him, laughing back into his enormous eyes. "One thing at a time … I have something important to tell you."

Instantly, the little boy became quiet, and settled himself upright in her lap, his brown eyes now becoming serious. She couldn't resist another smile.

"I'm going to give you a _very special_ mission. It's so special that … I can't even impress just _how_ important it is."

Kawanari's eyes widened in excitement and concern. "Okay. Tell me, tell me!"

"I want you to protect someone. This is a very important person."

Kawanari stared at her serious gaze, but although she kept her mouth straight, her eyes were dancing in delight.

"Me? Onee-chan, how on earth can I protect someone?"

"Ahh … come one, my precious, I'm sure even Tsunade-sama could not find someone better to look after this person. When we considered it, it was _you_ who came to mind. Believe me my little baby … no one can do a better job."

He blushed in pure delight then grinned. "Who – who can you mean, onee-chan?"

"I'm going to take you to them. Let's quickly get you dressed, little one."

Excitedly scrambling down from her lap, he raced into his bathroom to wash his face.

It wasn't much longer before they were walking, only minutes later back in the warm sunshine and the steady bustle of the street. Only slightly aware of the energised bundle scampering along beside her, Danah's mind went blank as she put her body on automatic, letting her feet lead the way to the destination.

Her feet came to an ungainly stop, and blinking in the beautiful morning light, she gazed upwards, momentarily disoriented. When she saw where she was, when she recognized the apartment buildings soaring above here, and who lived here, she realized something must have unconsciously set her feet in this direction. After all, her capacity as a healer always managed to stretch deeper than her emotions, however she was feeling. And right now, someone needed her, at least more than …

… _Him._

She forced the horrible thought down before it could birth itself properly in her mind. Angrily she shook her head, trying to clear it of the unhappy thoughts that had been taking nest in her mind and heart this last hour. She forced away his soft voice, his painful words …

But now, she knew she had to put aside her aching heart, and comfort one who needed it, look after one who needed it. It was the least she could do for …

"Onee-chan. Is this it? Have we arrived?"

She blinked and gazed down at the child beside her, his pristine white and red healer's uniform, enormous brown eyes taking in the apartment building, mouth slightly open. And as always with Kawanari by her side, her own troubles were forgotten momentarily, with the uncanny knack he always seemed to have of driving them away.

"Yes, this is it. Do you think you'll like it here, little one?"

A small frown marred the little boy's forehead. "I will make myself like it for your sake, onee-chan. But – but you promise to return soon, ne?"

Bending over, she slipped her arms tightly around the little boy, who delightedly hugged her back.

"Come on then." Shifting her precious bundle in her arms, she straightened and grinned cheekily down at the small face nestling against her neck. His eyes widened.

"O-Onee-chan! Put me down! I'm too heavy now! I'm too big –"

"Eh? What was that? Excuse me, my little one, but you'll _never _get too big to fit in my arms. You got that? Not when you love someone so much …" She balanced the child momentarily while she juggled with the door handle, pushing it. A rush of the cooler air inside, and it clicked closed again.

Kawanari cuddled further into her neck. "Even Naruto onii-san?"

She laughed softly. "Oh yes. Even my little baby Naruto. No, no one is _ever_ too big for the arms of someone who loves them. You just remember that."

Even despite her little weight, she felt new found strength returning to her limbs. Reaching the third landing, she stepped off into a long, dark corridor and gently placed her precious bundle down.

"Let's see … the fifth door on the left."

Reaching the door, she stood for a moment, hearing the soft clinking of glass and plate, the movement as someone was tidying up. Kawanari watched as she lightly held her ear near the door, then knocking lightly, pressing the handle …

Kawanari peeped around Danah, little fingers timidly holding onto her dress. He blinked at the beautiful brightness of this apartment room, a stark contrast to the dark stairs and corridor. The soft, comfortable furniture, the clean, sweet delicacy of the general setting, and finally, the tall, beautiful dark-haired woman who stood, plates in hand and gazing back at the door.

He watched as their eyes met, a beautiful smile settled on each of their faces, and the dark-haired woman placing her dishes down, and stepping forwards, her hands outstretched. He watched Danah take the woman's hands in both her own. Then her gaze shifted down and locked with his.

He stared up at her, at her thick mane of beautiful brown hair falling in waves, caressing her face and slender shoulders. The kindness and beauty in her crimson eyes as they gazed at him, the small tilt of her lips – which, he noticed with a shock, were a strange mix between happiness and tortured pain. He had seen that helpless smile in only a few women …

"Oh? And who is this little bunny?"

Kawanari smiled shyly and slipped more behind Danah, hiding his face in the folds of her dress. Turning, both of them smiled down at him.

"This little one? He's going to be your 'guardian'. He's promised me that he will watch over you and look after you until we return."

As Kurenai gently crouched down, Kawanari beamed up at the lovely woman, his hands already within her soft, warm ones, her voice like a sweet melody as she talked to him. He remembered Danah telling him earlier …

"_Little one … this person you're going to protect … there's actually two of her, not just one."_

Almost unconsciously, his eyes shifted to her belly, and frowned.

"_What do you mean, onee-chan?"_

_A sweet little laugh. "I mean that Kami-sama has given her something very, very beautiful and precious, and she has to carry it inside her for a while, to make sure to keep this little precious safe …"_

Kurenai's figure was still slim, but as he looked back up into her face, he noticed a strange, beautiful glow that set her aside. There, that odd sparkle in her eyes, which was different to that of just an ordinary, pretty woman! And that rose-pink blush on her cheeks!

And even those few seconds that Kurenai had taken her hands and led her to the table, her voice cheerful and her smile bright, Danah already felt the pang and pain flooding around her heart, as her alter ego stood to one side and gravely compared the two young women.

_She … she has lost the man she loves, lost him forever … He is never going to come back … but she has found the strength and grace to continue living …_

_And as for me … the man I love is … is … _

Danah managed only with difficulty to tune in back to the soft, sweet voice, banishing her shameful thoughts in her head. Taking the older woman's hands in both of hers, she beamed at her.

"I'm here first in my capacity as a doctor, Kurenai-sensei. _Then_ only as a friend."

A soft rose-pink tinge blossomed on Kurenai's face, then she tilted her head to one side and smiled as she gazed at the bright smile on Danah's face. "And now only I see the old Danah-smile back."

Danah blinked, then grinned, managing effectively to force down the sudden dark spiral that had surged upwards from her chest, hoping fervently it didn't show in her face. _My smile? What's that?_

"Kurenai-sensei … you look perfect. You look beautiful. But you have to make sure to go for more check-ups. It's better to be consistent all the way through the pregnancy, not just in the first few weeks then last few months."

When she looked at the same glowing, beautiful smile that was always on Kurenai's face, she felt a little more of herself die inside. _How does she do it? She's so, so amazing … To be in a position like this, and yet … She still has the smile of an angel …_ "Yes, Danah. I suppose I should. It will be better anyway, to be around all of you …"

It was then and only then, the sudden surging of sadness in the crimson eyes was immediately mirrored in Danah's own. _That's right … you have to be around us …_

"… So we can look after you …" Danah softly finished for her. "Even – even _he_ would have insisted … you know that …" A moment of silence descended on the two young women, and Kurenai's grip on Danah's little hands tightened. Gazing at the bowed head, Danah continued. "You're a Jounin of Konoha, because of our pasts and our training and everything, if anything you need more special care than the other mothers who come to rest in the wards. And you're even more special than usual, sensei, because you're one of the teachers of the rookie teams." Smiling sadly again, Danah sighed. "Though they're not so rookie anymore …"

_Our little babies have grown up so fast … so very fast …_

_This generation is amazing … _

The small tug on her dress immediately pulled her attention to the small child there, his eyes gazing up at them both adoringly, puzzled but still shy and happy.

"And you see that, Kurenai-sensei? This bunny's face has been my constant source of delight these past years. All you have to do," Here, she turned and crouching down, lightly took the little boy's face in her hands, and while he beamed at her, she continued whispering. "All you have to do, is look at this little precious thing, and you can feel the pain falling away from you."

Collecting the little boy into her arms, she warmly and tenderly pressed her lips to his forehead, giving him a tight hug. Blushing furiously, Kawanari grinned at her, squirming nonetheless. Kurenai smiled as Danah rose and pressed the tiny little hand into hers.

"I place my precious little baby into your care, in return for the promise that he will look after you."

Kurenai noticed her restlessness. "Are you going out?"

Danah grinned. "The summons is in about half an hour. I'm just going to pick up all the beautiful dumplings whom Hana and I will be babysitting and then going to the Shinobi offices." Smiling down at the enormous brown eyes that were gazing up at her, Danah ruffled his soft hair. "I'll be back to pick this little bunny up in a while. Perhaps you should just get acquainted?"

Kurenai smiled and gazed down at the little being beside her. "Will do." Kawanari smiled softly down at her. Before she could say anything, she felt a little tug at her hand. Turning, she gazed down at a suddenly excited Kawanari, who was motioning to her window.

"May I please go and look?" He asked excitedly. As Kurenai nodded, both young women watched as he beamed at her then scampered to the balcony, panting as he slid the heavy glass door open, then scrambling up onto a low seat, his head barely reaching the ledge. Rows of bright little flowers graced the floor and lined either side of the ledge, and little birds were already happily pecking around at little bread pieces put there or them. Kawanari, however, had spotted a little kitten, and had rushed to it, magnetised.

As Danah watched the little boy reach for the helpless, meowing kitten, as she watched the tender, gentle and adoring way he lifted it down from where it had stranded itself on the ledge and the way it nestled against his neck, reaching up to tap his nose with its paw, she didn't know why her throat suddenly closed up. She didn't know why her chest felt tight …

So when Kurenai, who had been smiling as she watched the little boy, turned and upon seeing the strange look on Danah's face, had asked, a little frown crossing her forehead, "Danah …? Did – did something happen?"

Danah's eyes refocussed. Finding her gaze suddenly locked into the beautiful crimson eyes, she felt almost swallowed by them, and her mind reeled as she thought back, back to the dark apartment, back to the weariness, the exhaustion, the fatigue, the pain … back as his words crashed around her painfully … his soft, beautiful, deep voice, wracked with pain, refusing to stop even as she had stared at him in horror, as she had pleaded …

"_I … can't … Danah, you know I can't give you … I can't do for you …what you truly want …"_

"_There is no way … I can continue to break your heart …"_

"_Why can't you understand … there is no way … we can be together like that …"_

"_I can't cause you pain … I can't bear to see the look in your eyes again when I leave … next time for who knows how long …"_

"_I know how strong you are, I know … but this – you see what happened? How can – how can I knowingly allow you to face pain, even similar to that? I – I can't, Danah …"_

"_Look how much I'm hurting you. Look what I've done to you … I've broken you so much … the life we both lead does that …"_

"… _Don't you understand? I wanted to be with you for the rest of my life. Do you understand that? The rest of my life. But … but … People like us … we're not meant to marry … because one of us one day … when we get sent out to a mission … one of us won't come back. And that will be the worst …"_

"_It's easy for someone to say that real love is when you want to be together, despite everything … but I don't know if I'm strong enough … I don't know – what happens if one day I lose the strength to return …?"_

"_What if … one day, love fails to bring me home …?"_

_Darkness … _

_Thick, dark, swirling …_

Then she blinked, and it was bright, cheerful apartment, a beautiful young woman in front of her, curiosity and worry gracing her features, and another beautiful little boy and a kitten happily playing on the balcony.

"No, Kurenai-sensei. I'm … just a little tired. But nothing's wrong."

_Nothing …_

* * *

**Chapter 4: Winds Of Change - Part 2**


End file.
